


Singularity

by scaredykitty



Series: Singularity [1]
Category: MindCrack, Minecraft - Fandom
Genre: Anal, Brainwashing, M/M, Torture, mindcontrol, mindcrack - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-16
Updated: 2013-09-16
Packaged: 2017-12-26 18:32:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 26
Words: 31,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/968914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scaredykitty/pseuds/scaredykitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mindcrack+Neuromancer+Call of Cthulhu. Sort of.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Long, rambling, and incoherent at points. I'm sorry.

It had been only two months since the singularity. Or, at least, that's what Guude had kept calling it. At first, it seemed like fun to live inside the computer, inside minecraft. All fun and games, right? Freedom to see everything, time was more subjective, and you could do things you'd never imagine you'd be able to do. Who wouldn't want to never have to sleep?

Until they found out they couldn't leave the server. There didn't seem to be a way to change servers, or log out, or even just go elsewhere. They were all stuck here on Mindcrack.

Guude had freaked out slightly. Just slightly. He tried to pull up the FTB server. Switch over, pull everyone with him. Something happened that day. 

Etho remembered watching Guude pulling at space around himself. Trying to grab hold of something invisible, intangible. He seemed to have found what he wanted, smiling to himself. Then everything wavered. The sky went grainy, a gray colour he had never seen before. The faint hiss of static permeated the air, the sound of a thousand sibilant whispers filling Etho's ears. He saw Guude standing transfixed as a portal grew in the air above him. Unable to look away, Etho stared up into the widening portal.

Everyone had seen inside the portal. Some took it better then others. Etho thought he had taken it rather well until he realized he was on the ground, whimpering. He had heard Shree disappeared after the portal opened. He knew Kurt had walled himself into the observatory, while several others just stopped talking. Arkas was one of the people that never spoke. Not that he spoke much before, but all he did now was build. Etho was pretty sure he never slept, either. Not that you had to sleep, but there was something to be said about resting once in awhile. He was pretty sure Zisteau had spent quite a bit of time killing something. Chickens, maybe He hoped that's what the blood was from. Wasn't really willing to push Zisteau about it, given his mood had changed since the event.

People weren't the only thing changed since the event though. Parts of the FTB server had crossed over onto the normal server. Strange tall towers that no one knew who built sprang up in spawn, while the various imposing factories and houses found themselves nestled next to more quaint houses. Somehow they all managed to fit, some trick of space managing to keep them from being superimposed on each other. The village...not that it was a village anymore, but a city, kept growing. Arkas did nothing but build. They were unnerving structures, reminiscent of that day. Etho had tried to ask Arkas why he built such things, but Arkas just stared at him before turning away and continuing to build. More inquiries fell on deaf ears.

Guude had taken it surprisingly well. Too well, Etho had thought. Every time Guude laughed now, smiled, it felt like someone else was in there also. He had tried to ask BDoubleO if he had noticed anything different, but he had taken offense at the question. The two of them had sequestered themselves in one of the larger towering buildings soon after. The imposing black glass tower served as their base now, and neither of them left if that often anymore.

A month had passed, before Guude had called to see Etho. He had made his way through the shimmering lobby, finding the small elevator. The interior of the elevator was sleek and minimalist, paneled in glass and steel. The mirrors seemed slightly distorted, causing his reflection to appear off. The elevator had seemed to ascend forever, taking far longer then what Etho thought a building of this size should take. When the elevator finally stopped on the top floor, Etho had stumbled out, to find himself in a single massive room. Richly upholstered chairs lay scattered around the room, while the floor was lushly decorated with a heavy crimson carpet. A massive cherrywood desk stood towards the back of the room, near the sheer glass that made up the entire wall.

Guude sat behind the desk, his back to the glass. He looked up at Etho entered the room. He grinned at Etho, waving a hand at a nearby chair. “Sit down, sit down. I need to talk to you.” Guude said as he continued to smile. Pushing back his uneasiness, Etho sat in one of the chairs.

“I require your services, Etho.” Guude said, still smiling. Frowning, Etho stared at Guude. “What services? I don't think you want me to rewire the redstone in your building.” Guude laughed at that, although it felt as though there was something slightly...off in the laugh. “I want to hire your services as a ninja. I want you to keep an eye on certain people on the server.”

“I don't know man, that seems unethical.” Etho said uneasily. A hand rested on top of Etho's head, causing him to jerk away and look up. BDoubleO stood behind the chair, dressed impeccably. Lack of sleep circled his eyes and mouth, making him look older then he was. “I'd really recommend you do what Guude asks you to do, mh hm.”

“Are you threatening me?” Etho said, frowning at BDoubleO. “I never said anything of the sort. You over react easily, did you know that?” BDoubleO said neutrally.

Pursing his lips slightly as he frowned, Etho turned back towards Guude. “Fine. You'll be paying me, right?” Guude smirked again. “Oh yes, very well.”

Rising from his chair, Etho ignore BDoubleO as he went to shake Guude's hand. After shaking hands, Guude had handed Etho a short list of names and how much he'd be paid when he delivered the info to BDoubleO.

Etho had spent two weeks watching the observatory and Kurt. Kurt never left the building. His routine was well, rather routine. He'd sleep during the day. He'd then wake up at night, eat, and spend the rest of the night using the telescope. When dawn came, he'd eat again, then go to sleep. When he handed the information to BDoubleO, he was told to cross the name off his list and go to the next person.

Which was why he was in the middle of nowhere trying to find Shree now.


	2. Chapter 2

It hadn't stopped raining since the event. The cold water poured down over Etho, causing him to pull his coat closer around him as he trekked towards the hinterlands. He had searched for Shree at his base near spawn, but it was expectantly empty. If Shree had been there, he had left in a hurry, taking only essentials, leaving everything else scattered around the place. It looked as though someone had come in afterwards though, and had torn up the place looking for...something. Either that or Shree had cracked up more then he thought. It was not a thought he wanted to entertain for long.

He had followed the trail he had hoped would lead to Shree for the past two days with no sleep. Even if he didn't sleep for very long, he still felt the need to close his eyes for a few hours each day. He didn't understand how Arkas or the others who didn't sleep anymore resisted the allure of a warm bed, to close your eyes and fall into darkness for at least a moment before the dreams came.

It was of little use, he could feel his eyes getting heavy just thinking about sleeping. He hoped Shree wasn't nearby and about to scamper away while he slept. It was a risk he was willing to take.

Etho pulled out a small collapsible tent, setting it up underneath a nearby tree. Crawling inside, he hoped it would keep the critters away while he slept. He was never too sure about how well it would work. Sighing softly, he dragged a ragged red blanket over himself, and soon he fell asleep.

The sound of the rain hitting the tent faded away as Etho felt his consciousness slip into the darkness. A faint hissing sound filled his ears before receding away, replaced with a low hum reminiscent of a old television set warming up. He stood in spawn again, watching Guude. The portal opened, slowly, inch by inch. He once again tried to look away, but felt the presence behind the opening. Staring into it, he could feel the presence inside the portal, the pressure weighing down on him. The presence slowly turned towards him, the distance between him and the portal gone as he felt it staring, looking, calling.

He woke with a start, sweat soaking the blanket as he gasped for air. Groaning slightly, he pulled out a small watch, blinking at it blearily. He had managed to sleep for four hours. “Good enough.” Etho mumbled to himself as he started to pack the tent down into a portable form again and stow it away. Etho shut his eyes and sighed as rain poured down on his head from a nearby branch. He always forgot it never stopped raining whenever he woke up. He pulled his coat on, hunkering down as he started to continue his trek.

The wet forest gave way to a wetter jungle, the air filled more with steam then with rain. Trying to find someone in a jungle was difficult, or at least annoying. The amount of vegetation meant seeing holes and pitfalls before you stumbled into them was difficult, even for those with keen eyesight. As these thoughts crossed Etho's mind, he heard a click sound. Looking down, he realized he had stepped on a pressure plate. As the ground disappeared from underneath of him, he sighed and closed his eyes. This was going to be highly unpleasant.

He fell for what felt like an eternity. Just as he was about to wonder how far down he was, he hit water. Opening his eyes in shock he pushed his way to the surface, only to find blocks in his way. Eyes widening in fear, he pushed at the blocks to no avail. The water suddenly started to rush out, taking Etho with them. The water poured out into the middle of a dark room, leaving Etho gasping for air.

“Who sent you here? Why are you here?” Shree's voice resounded out from the darkness just before his face appeared in front of Etho, causing Etho to jerk back suddenly. “Etho? No. You shouldn't be here. I didn't plan on you being who they sent. You need to leave.” Shree pulled away, disappearing back into the darkness.

Frowning slightly, Etho pulled a torch out and placed, illuminating the room around him. He had wished he hadn't. The room was just a rough dug pit in the earth. The wiring for the redstone waterfall lined the walls and floor, blending in with rough splatters of old blood and dirt. 

Worse then the room though was Shree himself. Cuts covered his arms and face, the blood dried and flaking off. Dirt and mud covered his lower legs, the pants legs in tatters. He seemed thin to the point of being malnourished, with what was left of his clothing hanging loosely around him. Heavy circles ringed his eyes, one of many symptoms of sleep deprivation. Stress or anger at the intrusion was causing him to twitch slightly. When the torch illuminated the room he growled and covered his eyes, cursing softly.

Etho wasn't quite sure what to say. “Uh, you...you need help Shree?” Shree glared at Etho before pointing towards the stairs. “Leave Etho. I'm not going back, and you can't make me. I saw what happened. I will not be near that, them...again.” Shree hissed at Etho, his eyes wide, mouth set in a thin line. 

Etho licked his lips, collecting his thoughts. “I'm not here to take you anywhere” Shree snorted “Lies.” “No. I'm suppose to figure out what you're doing, and tell someone. That's all. No mention of taking you anywhere.” Shree stared at Etho, his eyes wavering slightly before he frowned, shrugging. “Tell them whatever you want then. I won't stay here long enough for them to send someone out to drag me back.”

Shree retreated away from Etho, indicating once more he should leave with a hurried wave of his hand. Etho climbed to his feet and dusted himself off and headed towards the stairs. As he made it to the top of the stairs, he felt the ground quake underneath him as several ear splitting explosions rent the ground apart, causing the dirt to cave in, forcing him to leap to a safer area to stand. Shaking slightly, Etho looked down into the massive crater, his face drained of blood.

Crumbling dirt and stone blocks lined the crater. The hole was so deep that the bottom couldn't been seen. Shaking slightly Etho stepped away from the edge and inhaled slowly. No one had died since the singularity happened. No one was quite sure what would happen if someone died. They knew what happened before, sure, but no one was brave enough to test it out. If Shree was that determined to not go back, he sure had a damned good reason. Or so Etho hoped. 

Etho exhaled slowly as he realized he was shaking. He could stay here, or go back to BDoubleO and tell him what happened. He just hoped he would believe him.

Etho made it back to the glass and steel tower much quicker it had taken to find Shree, since he didn't have to stop and search for his passage on the way back. Stepping into the lobby he shivered, the cold air of running ACs blowing through the lobby. As he looked around the lobby, he teeth starting to chatter from being wet and now cold, he felt someone appear behind him. Turning around, he saw BDoubleO smiling at him.

“Well?” BDoubleO said as he stared at Etho, who continued to stare at him. “Oh, yes. He was in the middle of the jungle. He seemed...quite intent on never coming back here again. Intent enough to set of quite a lot of tnt.” “Oh really?” BDoubleO said, sounding almost bored. Clenching his teeth, Etho glared at him “Yes really. Given the size of the hole, I'm rather sure Shree is quite dead. Maybe doing something about it would be helpful.”

BDoubleO frowned at Etho before looking away, disinterested in his outburst. “Go to the next person. We don't need more surveillance on him anymore.” Turning away as Etho started to sputter, he entered the elevator and disappeared from view. Etho glared at the elevator before exiting the building. As he made his way back to his place in the city, he realized someone was following him.


	3. Chapter 3

Ducking into a back alley, he waited to see who was following him. As he watched silently, he saw a familiar figure look around, confused, before turning back to retrace his steps.

It was Nebris. Etho frowned, pondering to himself. He would have to deal with him later. He quietly made his way out of the city, making sure Nebris wasn't following him anymore.

He did not wish to watch Zisteau. He did not wish to find him. He thought over the possibility of telling BDoubleO that Zisteau was gone, prancing around with the other zombie pigmen, impossible to find.

But he knew that wasn't true. He knew where Zisteau was.

And he really did not wish to watch him work.

And yet here he was, at the lens. Etho sighed to himself as he made his way up the endervator. Not the most quiet of approaches, but hopefully the surly pigman would be asleep and not...busy as he usually was. Or if he was busy, hopefully he'd be too busy to notice him.

Etho carefully made his way to the interior of the lens as he began to search for Zisteau. Silently slipping through Zisteau's security measures, he peaked inside Zisteau's recent addition to the lens, the lab.

Etho closed his eyes and caught himself before he groaned. Zisteau was busy with his experiments.

The large laboratory was filled with gleaming white lab equipment. The parts not in use, at least. The heavy odor of disinfectant hung heavy in the air, along with the more gruesome smell of blood and bile. Zisteau has his back turned away from the single entrance to the room, busy dissecting an unfortunate looking bat. Its wings were pulled away, the skin on the wings pulled back in layers. Small clips suspended from the ceiling had been used to pull the internal organs from the body, keeping them within reach, but out of the way. Zisteau was humming softly to himself as he continued to pull the bat apart.

Etho jerked back when he heard the bat very faintly squeal, the sound sending shivers down his spine. 

The sudden movement alerted Zisteau, who quietly put down his surgical tools.

“Who's there?” Zisteau said calmly, turning towards the door. His mouth was opened slightly, the tips of his tusks bright white and sharp, making him look quite imposing.

Etho swallowed deeply before pushing the door open, wearing a smile. “Hey Zedsteau, so nice to see you again. Came by to see what you're up to.” Etho forced himself to remain calm. Just pretend to be confident, it'll all be fine.

Smirking slightly, Zisteau, indicated for Etho to come into the room. Etho stepped into the room, coming to rest about two feet behind Zisteau. “Just busy figuring something out, hm?” Zisteau picked up the scalpel again, pulling back more skin on the bat. “I have a theory hm, that these bats have a special...hm thing. Ah!” Zisteau poked the bat with the scalpel. The bat squeaked feebly again, flapping fruitlessly. Etho forced himself to look at the bat, instead of closing his eyes. He hated bats, but not...not this much. “See, I've taken out it's vocal cords already. It shouldn't be able to squeak. And yet it is. So why is it able to?” Zisteau continued as he poked at the bat, causing it to squeak again. “If I could find what is making it squeak, that would be something else, wouldn't it, hm?” Zisteau turned towards Etho expectantly.

Swallowing carefully Etho nodded at Zisteau, keeping his expression as placid as possible. “Something else, yes. What were you planning on doing with that knowledge?” Etho said, happy to not be looking at the sad bat. Zisteau blinked slowly before frowning. “Do something with the knowledge? It's just to have the knowledge. Why would I need to do something with it? Some scientist you are.” 

Backing away slightly, Etho smiled nervously at Zisteau. “Well, I don't want to interrupt this too much, so I'll just be going now.”

Zisteau scratched as his chin, pondering Etho thoughtfully. “I've always wondered if ninjas were naturally gifted with silence, or if it's learned. Might be more interesting then this bat...”

Etho turned and fled as several scalpels and surgical tools came flying at him, narrowly missing him. As he darted out the door, a long bladed surgical knife came whizzing as his shoulder and embedded itself in him, causing him to grunt. He threw one of his ender eyes out into the air around the lens as he continued around the lens, lost. His perception shifted as he found himself standing on the ground near the lens, feeling worn and drawn. With a grunt, he pulled the surgical knife from his shoulder, wincing at the pain.

“Well, that thoroughly sucked,” Etho said, sighing to himself. At least he could tell BDoubleO what Zisteau was up to. Not that he seemed to care much. Etho clenched his fists in anger before wincing as pain shot through his shoulder.

After a long journey back to the tower, he was once again inside the cold steel building. He had bandaged up his shoulder the best he could on his way back, setting it in a loose sling. The knife had cut deeper then he first thought, making the wound slow to heal, giving him quite some pain. He pondered how long it should take to heal, wondering if he should just try and have a potion, nervous of the side effects.

The sound of elevator opening broke him from his reverie. BDoubleO slid out of the elevator, walking towards Etho.

“Took you longer then it should have,” BDoubleO said, frowning at Etho. His eyes slid over Etho, catching on the cotton sling before shrugging dismissively. “Zisteau is still tearing small creatures apart. With more precision this time,” Etho said, turning away from BDoubleO, not wanting to see the smirk on his face.

“Did he find anything new out?” BDoubleO said coolly. Etho winced as he pulled a folder out from under his coat with his good arm and handed it to BDoubleO. “I found that while he was busy with his experiment. I'm sure there's something you want in there.”

BDoubleO took the packet, flipping through it quickly. “Hm, interesting thing on those cats...want to see?” Etho blanched, shaking his head at BDoubleO, causing the older gentleman to grin at Etho's discomfort. “Suit yourself. Change of plans. Guude would like you to get Doc to go visit Zisteau. Can you do that?” 

Etho blinked, confused. “That's not really something I'm all that good at. I could try, but really, I'm more sneaky, less convincing.” “I know, hm. I just thought you'd at least be able to try.” BDoubleO said quietly. “Fine. I want more pay.” Smirking again, BDoubleO nodded. “I'll make sure to increase your pay.”

Etho winced and leaned against the front of the building once he was outside, groaning quietly. As he exhaled slowly, he realized someone was watching him from across the street.

Nebris again. Pulling himself upright, he made his away across the street. As Nebris noticed him, he ducked into an alley, fading from view. Etho shook his head, confused. What was Nebris up to? Etho shrugged, unconcerned with his stalker for the time being. He'd have to deal with him after figuring out how to cajole Doc into talking with Zisteau. The two of them should get along quite well. Etho shuddered at the thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Etho shuddered, the cold rain seeping in through his coat and into the bandage, the water causing the bandage to stick to the weeping wound and causing him to inhale sharply. Etho pulled out a small cell phone, dialing BDoubleO. While he could just go back inside the building, he was in no mood to see BDoubleO face to face again for awhile.

The phone picked up after two rings. “Hi Etho. Unexpected. What did you want, were the instructions unclear?” “You could say hi at least. I'm going to need longer. My shoulder is killing me, I'm taking a week off to let it heal more.” “Fine. If you need a place to...heal, there's an apartment nearby. I'll text you the co-ordinates and room access number.” Etho could almost feel BDoubleO's displeasure oozing from the phone. Etho started to shrug before thinking better of it. “Fine.” The line went dead. “Who hangs up without saying goodbye? Ingrate.” Etho said, frowning at the phone. A few moments later, the phone beeped, indicating a new text message. Looking at the co-ordinates, Etho could only murmur in surprise.

The apartment building was one of Arkas's creations. Gleaming white quartz wrapped around obsidian in a helix pattern. The building continued up past the clouds, the swirling pattern causing a headache if stared at too long. Carefully pushing into the lobby, Etho stopped suddenly as he suddenly smelled the overwhelming scent of disinfectant. Going pale and wavering on his feet, he caught himself before he fell, exhaling slowly. The scent faded, replaced with with the faint scent of high powered AC units.

Etho made his way to the front desk, coming face to face with a very bored Pyro. He was currently reading a magazine, clearly bored. He was dressed in a rather ill fitting suit. “Welcome. Do you have a key, or do you need one?” Pyro said without looking up. “I need a key. Where's your dragon outfit?” Etho said, causing Pyro to finally look up. An odd look passed over Pyro's face. Doubt, or confusion perhaps. The troubled look on his face passed, to be replaced with bored indifference. “Hi sir. BDoubleO called ahead and said to expect you. Here's your key. Elevator's on the right. Top floor.” Etho took the key, before leaning in closer to Pyro. “Pyro. Dragon outfit. Remember? You always wear the thing? Why aren't you wearing it?” Pyro looked up at Etho. Doubt and confusion crossed his face, suddenly changing to sadness and pain. Just as quickly as Etho saw this, Pyro turned away, staring at the magazine. Etho waited for a moment before shrugging, getting in the elevator.

As the doors closed, he saw Pyro resting his head on the front counter. As much as he wanted to go out and see if he could do anything for Pyro, he had the sinking feeling that if he tried to talk to him again, he'd just revert to bored indifference again.

Pushing the button for the top floor, the elevator took off, traveling at neck break speed, before abruptly halting. Etho stepped out of the elevator, his head spinning from either the height or the speed of the trip, he wasn't sure. There was only a single door on the floor. Wincing slightly as he shrugged and cursed softly about not shrugging until his shoulder was better, he opened the door, only to stop in shocked silence.

Opulent carpet covered the floor in shades of gold and silver. Plush chairs and couches sat around the room, heavy cherry wood and mahogany tables carefully situated in exact places. As elegant and refined as the apartment look, it felt as though everything was placed with exact, almost mechanical precision. The living room wall was clear glass, looking out over the clouds. Barely perceptible a few blocks away was Guude's tower, the glass and steel dark against the pale clouds.

Etho felt drawn to look over at the building. Looking over, he felt he could almost make out figures walking around the top floor. One of the minute figures stopped, before turning towards the great window. Time seemed to stop, as a huge shadow descended over both buildings, the oppressive feeling of cold infinite space seeping into Etho, holding him in place. The space between the buildings wavered, and suddenly everything felt closer. He could see Guude standing next to the window, smirking at him. As Etho's eyes widened, Guude grinned, his mouth filled with innumerable pointed teeth. What terrified him more then anything was Guude's eyes. Instead of his soft green eyes, he saw darkness, punctuated with what appeared to be stars in endless space. As quickly as this happened, suddenly everything snapped back to normal, the building too far to make out. Etho laid down on the nearby couch, shivering.

Etho woke up with a start. He had fallen asleep on the couch. He wondered what had awoke him though. The second ring of the doorbell alerted him. He slowly made his way to the door, opening it.

“Oh hi Nebris. Wait, Nebris?” Etho said groggily, before Nebris pushed his way into the room.


	5. Chapter 5

Nebris pushed into room, pulling Etho with him. “Hey hold up now what the hell are you doing Nebris? Hnn watch the shoulder!” Etho said as Nebris pulled him away from the windowed wall, behind one of the structural supports for the building.

Nebris stared at him, his eyes dilated, both hands holding onto Etho's shoulders, pinning him against the support column.

“Can you please take your hands off my shoulders? It hurts a rather great deal.” Etho said, trying to remove Nebris's hands with his good arm.

Nebris continued to stare at Etho, shaking slightly. “You are going to destroy everything. Why are you doing this?” Nebris said, his voice low and ragged.

Etho blinked at Nebris. “What the hell are you talking about? I'm not destroying anything.” Etho said, trying to wiggle out from Nebris's grasp. Nebris squeezed Etho's shoulders, causing him to howl in pain as lights flashed in his eyes, everything going gray for a moment.

Gritting his teeth, Etho managed to knee Nebris in the groin quickly, forcing him to let go for a moment. Spinning around the support column, Etho ran towards the door, trying to make it outside.

Nebris howled something unintelligible and grabbed his shoulder again, shouting about destruction and justice, when everything seemed to explode.

The glass wall shattered, sending shards flying inwards, cold air blasting into the building as fog from the cloud layer started to roll in. Faint, clammy strings of clouds started to ooze about, coating the furniture near the window with a slick layer of moisture.

Etho slumped to the ground as Nebris suddenly let go of him, his shoulder throbbing in pain. Reaching towards the nearby wall, Etho managed to pull himself up. Looking out into the fog, he was sure he saw faint shapes flying towards the building. Not wanting to stay and see what they are, he grabbed Nebris where he laid on the floor, and pulled them both out into the hall before slamming the door shut.

Inhaling deeply, Etho looked down at Nebris. Going pale, Etho realized Nebris had been shot in the arm. Etho took off his jacket, wrapping it around the wound, searching through his pockets for a contraband potion.

Guude had outlawed potions, claiming that since the event potions were addictive, had other unfortunate side effects. No one dared question the policy at the time, but Etho had always carried a healing potion on him in case. He has been nervous to use the potion on himself since he felt healthy other then the shoulder, wanting to save it for a true emergency, but he would have to use it on Nebris. He'd die from blood lose if he did nothing.

Etho murmured to himself as he grabbed Nebris's head and opened his mouth, before pouring the entire bottle in. Holding his breathe, the potion flashed before dissipating, causing Nebris to glow briefly.

The wound began to flash, the blood slowing before stopping as the wound closed, leaving an obvious scar. Once the wound was closed, Nebris sat up suddenly, gasping for air.

“Uhh...hi Etho. What are you up to?” Nebris said, looking at Etho confused. “You were just yelling at me about destroying the world. I know you passed out from being shot, but you should still remember that!” Etho said incredulously. 

Nebris frowned, concentrating. “I remember talking to Guude, but otherwise, I'm not sure what you're talking about. I was shot? Are you ok? Shit, were you shot also?” Nebris asked, noticing the bandage on Etho. “I'm ok, I'll be fine. I think it's time to get out of here.” Etho said as the sound of crunching glass sounded from the other side of the door, a low hissing filling the room.

“If you insist. I still have no idea what the hell you're talking about,” Nebris said, bemused. Etho grabbed Nebris's hand, pulling him towards the staircase. “Why not take the elevator?” Nebris asked, confused. “Exploding glass walls flying creatures, something weird, not going to risk using the elevator.” Etho said as they started to make their way down the stairs.

After what felt like an eternity, they made it to the ground floor. Several times Etho could swear he heard noises resonating from further up the stairwell, but whenever he looked up, he saw nothing. Bursting into the lobby, both Etho and Nebris stopped to catch their breathe.

Pyro watched them from the front desk lobby. A faint ghost of a smile passed across his face as they jogged towards the front door. “You're going to want to use the back door. You won't make it through the front.” Pyro said quietly as they passed by.

Etho pulled Nebris to a stop, looking over at Pyro who was reading a magazine again. “Come with us, Pyro.” Etho said, staring at the young man. Pyro looked up, staring at Etho blankly. “Don't worry. I have other plans. Get out of here.” Pyro said quietly.

Etho took a step before stopping. “If your plan involves exploding the building while inside it, I'm going to have to veto that, and tell you to knock it off.” Pyro shook his head quickly. “No. Get going. They'll be here any moment.”

Nebris followed Etho, following his lead as they made their way to the back of the building. Making their way out into the street, they both were assaulted by the torrential downpour.

“So, where to now, Etho?” Nebris said, looking confused.

“I'm not quite sure. Out of the city, I guess.” Etho said with a sigh.


	6. Chapter 6

The last two days had been miserable. Etho and Nebris couldn't agree on where to go, so they both had wound up wandering through several forests while they bickered about what was going to happen next.

“If you're just going to be that infuriating and not ask anyone for help, I'll just go ask Guude myself!” Nebris said growling at Etho, as the two of them set up a small camping area.

Etho glared at Nebris unhappily. “You don't listen to anything I tell you, Nebris. I've already told you I'm pretty sure it was Guude who shot you. Who else has a building that tall, access to the top floor, and could shoot from that distance? If you go to Guude, you'll just wind up dead. Or possibly forget everything again, and wind up coming after me telling me how I'm destroying the world. You are not going anywhere. We are going to figure something out.” Nebris grumbled unhappily. “I still say you're bullshitting me. I don't remember any of that happening at all. I bet you've just gone insane and all of this conspiracy stuff is you uh, going more insane.” Nebris sighed, but crawled inside the completed tent, Etho following him, pulling his mask off as he entered the tent.

“Why can't you believe me?” Etho said unhappily as he pulled a blanket out of his pack. Nebris blinked as he turned to look at Etho, before breaking out into laughter. “Yes, why don't I believe the largest troll ever when he's going off on a crazy idea about Guude going insane and trying to kill people for no reason, or how you say you saved me from dying, or any other part of this insane trip.” Nebris shook his head at Etho, who was now glaring at him. “Admit it, Etho. You're lost, with no plan. You don't know where to go, and are grasping at any straws you have right now. We should just go back to Guude, ask him what happened. You're just being incredibly paranoid and delusional right now.”

Etho sat up before suddenly swinging around and straddling Nebris, pinning his arms to the floor. “What the fuck do you think you're doing, Etho?” Nebris said, struggling to get out from underneath Etho. Etho ignored Nebris's struggles as he glared down at him. 

“I watched Shree kill himself just to avoid going near Guude and BDoubleO again. I've had Zisteau throw surgical tools at me while dissecting bats. I watched as you barged into my room yelling and shrieking about me destroying everything, only to watch a wall of glass explode as you got shot. I am not overreacting when I say we are not going back there, and that you really should do as I tell you to do for now,” Etho said, face flushed in anger, trembling slightly.

Nebris frowned, pursing his lips slightly. “Ok, I get why you don't want to go back. But why care if I go back? It's not like I can tell Guude where you're going if neither of us know what to do next. Wandering around the woods with a delusional person is not my idea of a good time. Get off of me.” Etho shivered, his eyes dilating as he stared down at Nebris.

Etho mumbled something incoherent before rolling off of Nebris and lying down, pulling a blanket over himself. “What did you say, Etho?” Nebris asked as he laid a hand on Etho's shoulder. Etho shrugged, trying to remove Nebris's hand. “Doesn't matter. Go to sleep.” “Answer me or I'll punch your bandaged shoulder?” Nebris said quietly.

Quietly, Etho replied, “I said I don't want my worst friend and best enemy die. I've seen too much pain already.”

“Oh.” Nebris said, unsure what else to say. If he had said it any other way, he might have thought Etho was insulting him. But the inflection alone nearly broke his heart. Nebris wasn't sure what else to say as he fell asleep, hand still on Etho's shoulder.

Nebris was awoken in the middle of the night as Etho whimpered, whining under his breathe about something in one of his dreams. Nebris listened as silently as Etho faintly cried out in terror in his sleep. His heart froze as he heard Etho fall silent, before starting to cry quietly. Nebris rolled over onto his side, pushing himself up with one arm to look at Etho. His heart sank as he saw that Etho was indeed crying in his sleep. Lying down on his back, he stared at the roof of the tent, unsure what to do.

Nebris closed his eyes as Etho continued to whimper quietly. As much as he fought Etho, raged against him at times, he hated to hear him like this. Rolling over, Nebris wrapped an arm around Etho, holding him tightly. Etho stopped whimpering almost instantly, replaced with the soft sound of his slow, even breathing. The faint thought of using this as blackmail crossed Nebris's mind, before another thought intruded about how comfortable this felt. Blushing slightly, he fell back asleep.

Etho woke up, blinking slightly. He was not sleeping on the pillow anymore. Why was he not sleeping on the pillow anymore. Pulling upwards, he felt a heavy arm wrapped around him. “Oh.” Etho said, very quietly. He was wrapped in Nebris's arms, his head resting against Nebris's shoulder. Nebris yawned, opening his eyes, looking down at Etho.

The two of them stared at each other for a while, blushing slightly. Several moments passed before Nebris opened his mouth. Etho took the opportunity to pull himself closer to Nebris, kissing him as he held onto him. Nebris's eyes widened in shock before he pulled Etho closer, holding him tightly. Nebris closed his eyes, realizing what a terrible idea this was. If Etho was paranoid or mentally deranged, this entire thing could explode around him. If what he said was true, then they might get killed by whatever thing Etho said had taken over Guude. It didn't seem to matter right now what was true or not as they both became more heated, gripping each other tightly.

Etho pulled away, inhaling deeply. He mumbled out a quick “Sorry” as he blushed, staring at Nebris. “This is a terrible idea, Etho. What are we going to do, run away from the issue, just you and me? That's no way to live,” Nebris said softly. Etho blushed, looking away from Nebris, whispering, “Ye...yeah that was what I was thinking of us doing. I guess it's sort of silly. If you still want to go back to Guude, we can.” He looked up at Nebris, lips parted. Nebris squeezed Etho tightly. “Yeah. But I think he can wait a few more hours,” Nebris said, kissing Etho again.


	7. Chapter 7

Etho and Nebris slowly made their way back to the city, not talking much. Nebris was concerned slightly that Etho had given in so readily to going back, but he wasn't sure why. Something just seemed off about the whole affair. He shook his head slightly, trying to remove the doubt creeping into his mind.

Nebris's thoughts turned towards trying to remember what happened after talking to Guude. From what Etho had told him, he had talked to Guude about a month, maybe a month and a half ago at this point. It worried him that he couldn't remember what happened. He remembered Guude droning on, feeling tired, something about working with someone, or being with someone, but he couldn't remember. He just remembered waking up, looking at Etho, his mind clearer then since before the event. He thought at a few points he thought he saw Etho texting someone on his phone, but when he looked over, it seemed like he was checking the time. Nebris closed his eyes. Perhaps he was just tired.

As they drew closer to the steel and glass building, Etho had started walking closer to Nebris, almost possessively. Entering the building, Etho had relaxed slightly, his eyes going soft as they entered the elevator. As the elevator climbed upwards at a dizzying rate, Etho grasped Nebris's hand, squeezing it quickly before dropping it as the door opened.

Guude was sitting on the desk, watching them as they walked in. Nebris nearly froze as he saw the look on Guude's face. It wasn't anger or annoyance at the intrusion, which was concerning. Was he expecting them? Etho grabbed Nebris by the arm, dragging him in the room.

Etho sat down on one of the nearby chairs, face blank as he stared at Guude.

“Nebris. So good you came back. Wasn't sure how well this plan would work, but it's a good thing it did. I didn't want to actually have to kill you.” Guude said, smirking. Cloudy swirls of black were circling his pupils, consuming the green irises in darkness.

“What? What the hell is going on?” Nebris said as he started to back away towards the door, before he bumped into someone. Nebris turned around, and found himself looking down at Shree. Shree stared up at him, glasses covering his eyes as he nudged Nebris with his rifle. “What the hell? Etho said you killed yourself.” Nebris turned towards Etho, who continued to stare blankly at Guude.

Shree shrugged at Nebris as BDoubleO stepped out of the elevator. He smirked at the proceedings, before nodding at Nebris. “I'd recommend you sit down, Nebris. Maybe if you're really good, Guude will tell you what's happening.” BDoubleO said. Guude grinned at Nebris, showing far too many teeth. Nebris frowned, taking a seat, staring at Guude as Guude hopped down from the desk.

Guude look at BDoubleO, smiling at him. “You were right in thinking he'd go after Etho. Soon we'll have the whole gang here.” Guude turned towards Etho. “You did a good job. Very convincing, it seems. As promised, Nebris is yours as payment. Only one problem. He reacts really poorly to being influenced, heh. Guess we can keep him locked up here...” Etho tilted his head at Guude, before shaking it softly. “Oh, no worries, you'll have full access to him. But, have to keep him from running away until Zisteau and Doc come up with a better way of keeping him under control. They already got Shree back, and that only took Zisteau a few days. Shouldn't take the two of them together that much longer.” Guude patted Etho on top of the head before turning at walking towards Nebris. He knelt down in front of the chair, pondering him with a small frown on his face.

“It was a risk letting you run away once you started to go nuts. But no worries, we'll figure out something.” Guude said, with an unnerving smile.

Nebris blinked. “You're saying...all this was a ploy to get me back?” Guude shook his head. “You and Shree. You weren't the only one to try and get away. You just were the more...worrisome of the two. You don't remember anything, do you?” Guude said with a sad smile. Nebris shook his head, feeling faint.

Guude sighed, before staring at Nebris, locking eyes with him. “I called you here a month and a half ago. I tried to convince you to work with me. Most people agree to this, but your quirks blew up too much. You became fixated on Etho. Wouldn't listen at all. Shree just ran away. Still nominally in control, so easy to sway once we knew where he was. You were much more difficult. So we called in Etho. Our feelings had gotten in the way before, and had let Etho do what he wanted. Sentimental, we were. So we called him here. Convinced him to work with us. His quirks revolved around you too.” Guude smirked at that, before continuing. “He drove a hard bargain. We'd give up you as one of our chess pieces, you'd be his to do with what he wished. In return, he'd bring back both of you. We knew you'd get flighty if you thought he was under our control. So he acted as though he was free. Good at misdirection. Even had himself convinced he was free too, I suspect.” Guude grinned at Etho, before turning back to Guude.

Nebris stared at Guude, pale. “Why?” “Why what?” Guude asked, perplexed.

“Why do all this? What is your goal in all this? I don't see why you're doing all this.” Nebris said, shaking his head. His head was pounding now. It felt someone was hitting him with a hammer. Guude smiled, his teeth sharp and pointed, causing Nebris to shrink down in the chair in alarm. “Why play chess with you lot? Because it's fun. It was so boring in the darkness, in the place between worlds. But here is warm, filled with energy. I've never gotten to play with such interesting toys. But you lot didn't want to play nice. So we made you more compliant. Susceptible. Some of you liked it even. Well, after awhile.” Guude laughed, the sound so normal and incongruous with what was happening. Nebris shook his head slowly, holding his head in his hands.

Guude reached over, lifting Nebris's head so he could look him in the eyes again. “Oh don't be hmmm?” Guude said, turning to Etho who was standing over Guude suddenly, looking down at the two of them. “Go sit back down Etho.” Guude said, frowning at Etho. Etho leaned down and whispered something to Guude quietly, far quieter then even Nebris could hear. Guude's eyes narrowed, the blackness consuming his eyes, faint points of light flashing deep in the clouds. Hissing slightly, he nodded at Etho. “Fine, fine. Don't get yourself into a tizzy. Take him to the basement, I guess. He's yours now, until we have a more permanent solution.” Guude stood up, walking behind the desk. He waved a dismissive hand at the two of them, busying himself with paperwork.

Etho reached a hand down to Nebris, who just stared up at him in shock. “What if I'd rather just sit here in shock?” Nebris asked, staring at Etho. “If you can't control your toy Etho, I'll do it for you.” Guude said, smirking at the two of them. Nebris sighed, grabbing Etho's hand, standing up. Walking towards the elevator, they passed Shree and BDoubleO. BDoubleO smirked at the two of them, waving sarcastically at them as the elevator doors closed.

Once the doors were fully closed, Nebris rounded on Etho, pushing him against the elevator wall. “This was all a ploy, Etho? You...you're a fucking asshole. I guess I was right when I was yelling at you about destroying everything. Unless that was a lie too, like everything else.” Nebris sighed, closing his eyes. “We should have run away. Ergh! No wonder you didn't really care if we left or came back! It was the same for you either way!” Nebris let Etho go, before sitting on the floor of the elevator.

Etho removed his mask, stuffing it in a back pocket as he stared down at Nebris. “It's not that bad. Once we get you all sorted out, anyway. Guude won't touch you until then. After Zedsteau figures out what went wrong, you'll be all fixed up.” Nebris frowned, staring up at Etho. “Didn't he stab you or something?” Etho smiled, shrugging. “Yeah. He likes a bit of drama. If he had wanted to kill me, he would have. Can't blame him, it's been fun allowed to roam away from the city. Doesn't hurt that bad anymore. Stand up, we're almost there.” Etho said, frowning at Nebris. Nebris bite his lip before standing up.

The door opened up into a large basement. “Oh hell no.” Nebris said as he blinked a few times before comprehending what he was seeing. Etho turned towards Nebris. “Come on Nebris. Either you come with me or Guude comes down and forces you to.” Nebris exhaled slowly, cursing under his breath as he and Etho stepped into the basement, the doors closing behind them.


	8. Chapter 8

BDoubleO had given Shree very explicit instructions. He was to go to the basement, close his eyes, hear the door open, step out into the basement, call for Etho, tell Etho he had to give him something, once Etho had taken the papers, he was to turn around, get into elevator, and only then open his eyes. 

These seemed like rather specific and unhappy instructions. Part of him did not want to do it, but he knew if he resisted, Zisteau would come by and do more things to him. Or worse, Guude would. Shree shivered as he remembered Zisteau and Guude staring at him. They had been looking at him like he was a test subject. It was unnerving. The memory of it made his head spin.

So Shree stepped out of the elevator, holding onto the pack of papers in both hands, his eyes closed. “Etho! I have been sent by BDoubleO to give you papers. I request you come and get these papers so I can leave now.” Shree said, his voice shaking slightly. “Uh, one moment.” Etho called out, his voice distant. Shree could hear him talking to someone, before hearing footsteps. Shree shoved the papers out in front of him.

“Why are your eyes closed, Shree?” Etho asked, amused. “Because BDoubleO told me to not open my eyes while here.” Shree answered honestly. “Oh did he?” Etho said, laughing softly. “So I could keep you here too, as long as you didn't open your eyes?” “No, you are suppose to take the papers, then I'm to get in the elevator, and leave.” Shree answered, unsure what Etho was suggesting. Etho sighed softly, grabbing the papers. “Ok Shree. Go get in the elevator.” Shree shrugged, before turning around and getting in the elevator. He opened his eyes, before turning around again to push the button. Looking up, he saw Etho standing in front of the elevator waving at him. “Oh.” Shree said, unsure of what else to say.

Etho smirked as the door closed, before looking down at the packet of papers. BDoubleO was being a bit mean sending Shree down here, but oh well. Hopefully the kid wouldn't be too scarred. Etho flipped through the papers, frowning as he read them. Apparently Guude wanted him to go figure out what some other people were up to. He didn't think they had run away, but he wasn't sure, he wasn't able to call them back in. Etho sighed again, annoyed he was being called away. Looking at the list of names, Etho smirked.

Walking over to where he had left Nebris tied up, he caressed him while humming softly. Nebris remained silent. “Change of plans. We're going out to see a friend of yours. Feel up to the task?” Nebris licked his lips before finally looking up at Etho. “Who?” “MC and Millbee. Well, maybe the both of them. Last we know they were both together. Mmm Pause might be there also...” Etho said, trailing off. Nebris groaned softly. “As long as it's out of here, that's all fine.” Nebris whimpered as Etho smirked at him, pulling the bindings off. “You'll still be with me. I wouldn't suggest trying anything. Zisteau gave me something to surprise you with if you tried.” Nebris hung his head, not speaking. “Good. Here's some clothes, time to get dressed.”

The two of them stepped out into the city, Nebris carrying a black umbrella while Etho just pulled his coat around himself. Walking silently through the city, they started to make the trek to Woolopolis, last know location of both MC and Millbee. As they came to the outskirts of the small town, two large golems stood in front of them, barring access. The two golems looked down at their shoes, then pointed at the large sign. Etho and Nebris rolled their eyes before removing their shoes, shoving them into their backpacks. The golems moved, allowing them access.

Carefully walking through the village, they started looking into the various buildings. As they continued to walk through the village, they heard faint giggling in one of the smaller buildings. Looking at each other, they quietly made their way over, looking inside. 

Nebris started to giggle softly before Etho pinched him, causing him to whine and fall silent. MC and Millbee were lying on the floor. MC was going on some rant about jumping puzzles or something, it was hard to make out, while Millbee was making funny faces at him in an attempt to get him to laugh. It seemed to be working, as MC started to trail off, laughing too loudly to continue his train of thought. MC suddenly tugged at Millbee, pointing at the window.

“Oops. Well, let's go say hi.” Etho said as MC and Millbee glared at the two of them. Walking around to the front, they opened the door, stepping inside.

“Whadya want Etho, we're busy.” MC said, pouting. “Nebris! Come ere! We've missed you!” He shouted as he suddenly noticed Nebris standing behind Etho. Nebris looked over at Etho, who shrugged, letting him enter the room. Nebris went over and sat down next to MC and Millbee, who both proceeded to hug him. “Awww, he is super huggable, you're right MC!” Millbee said as he cuddled Nebris, who mostly just looked confused about what was happening. “I doubt you came here just to let us snuggle Nebris, so what do you want?” MC said as he finally let go of Nebris, staring at Etho.

“Guude wants to know why you haven't checked in for awhile.” Etho said, causing Millbee and MC to go white, pulling away from Nebris as they both looked down at their hands. “Well uhm it. We lost track of time?” MC said nervously, not looking at Etho. “Yes, that. Lost track of time. We'll call him now.” Millbee said, fidgeting as he stared at the floor.

Smirking at the unhappy pair, he shook his head. “Too late for that. You two are coming with me. Now, you either come in quietly, or I destroy Woolopolis. So. What will it be?” “Oh fuck you!” Millbee said as he stood up. “You are such a dick. Fine. Come on MC, let's go. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can come back.” MC sniffled, standing up. Etho stared at Nebris, who stood up and walked to stand next to Etho.

The four of them trudged back to the city quietly. MC suddenly looked over at Nebris, frowning. “So why are you following Etho around, Nebris? We were waiting for you, but what, do you work with him now?” Nebris looked down at the ground. “Something like that.” He mumbled. “Oh. Wait, are you two a couple? Are you? You are!” MC said, tugging at Nebris's arm. “Eeee, that's so cuuuute!” MC and Millbee said at the same time. Nebris stared down at the ground while Etho grinned, clearly amused at MC's and Millbee's antics. The pair stopped laughing as the gleaming steel and glass came into view, falling silent.

The four of walked silently out into the room, where Guude was waiting for them by himself. MC and Millbee shuffled into the room before sitting down on one of the couches. “We're sorry! We were going to call, we forgot the time!” MC said, blushing brightly. Nodding emphatically, Millbee agreed wholeheartedly.

Guude looked over at Etho and Nebris, who were both still standing near the elevator. Smirking, Guude said calmly. “Want to stay and watch, you two? I'd really recommend Nebris stays at least, so he'll know what happens if he tries to leave again.” Etho nodded at Guude, dragging Nebris over to a couch across the room from where MC and Millbee were seated.

Guude slowly made his way over to MC and Millbee. “Look at me.” He said coldly, staring down at them. The two of them looked up at him, holding onto to each other. Sibilant whispers filled the room as the temperature seemed to drop. The hair on the back of Nebris's neck stood up as Etho pulled him closer to him. Etho whispered quietly to Nebris, “This is why you're good, Nebris. Otherwise you get to actually see what he's doing.” Nebris could only see MC's and Millbee's faces, both were blank and flat, eyes wide. Nebris turned away, looking at Etho instead. Etho smiled at him.

The room become unbearably hot suddenly, causing Nebris to inhale. He felt his pulse quicken, the feeling of sudden needing and wanting pressing down on him. Etho smirked at him, not moving. The feeling grew oppressive, causing Nebris to whine softly as he silently cursed to himself, sure his face was bright red. Etho leaned close to Nebris, whispering in his ear. “Something wrong, Nebris?” Nebris groaned as Etho breathed in his ear, his breath warm. Etho laughed quietly, licking Nebris's ear, causing him to groan again, fidgeting in the seat. “You seem distracted Nebris. Something wrong?” Nebris stopped himself from groaning a third time, biting his tongue trying to distract himself.

Etho laughed softly, caressing Nebris, pulling at his pants. Nebris moaned, unable to stop himself. “Beg, Nebris. I want to hear how you want me to fuck you. Beg me, Nebris.” Etho said, his voice low as he continued to gently caress Nebris.

Nebris whined, head back against the couch as Etho kissed his neck. “Ple...please Etho.” “Not very good Nebris.” Etho said, pulling his hand away, placing it on Nebris's chest. Nebris whimpered. “Please Etho. Please **please** Etho. I fucking need your touch. Please fuck me...” Nebris groaned as Etho started to caress him again. “Better. Get up, we're going downstairs. Don't want to distract Guude more then we already are.”

Nebris managed to almost calm down as they entered the elevator. Etho grabbed him, pushing him against the glass, kissing him forcefully. Nebris groaned again, the feeling of needing welling up as he let the feeling control him, letting Etho do what he wanted to do. The two of them stumbled into the basement, shedding clothes as Etho nipped at Nebris's neck, breath hot against skin. 

“Do you finally submit to me, Nebris?” Etho said, hands raking down Nebris's chest. Nebris moaned as Etho pressed him against the wall. “Yy..yes Etho. I'm yours. Please Etho. Please fuck me Etho. Oh god just please. Whatever you want Etho please...” Nebris groaned as Etho turned him around, pressing into him. “You are mine Nebris. All mine. Every part of you.” Etho said, the words low and dangerous, hissing slightly as he continued to fuck Nebris. Nebris moaned louder. “I'm yours, Etho. Everything. Oh fuck Etho. Ohh fuck!” Nebris groaned as he came, feeling Etho fill him, the two of them moaning loudly. They stumbled slightly before crashing on a nearby bed, Etho holding onto Nebris.

“It's good you finally submitted, Nebris. Otherwise I would have had to ask Guude for help. And he's even less gentle then me.” Etho said, caressing Nebris's face. “I think we'll stay here for a day or two before going out searching for our dear friend Pause.”

Nebris lay silent, panting quietly. He wasn't sure why he hadn't given in sooner anymore, whatever thoughts that had stopped him before gone.


	9. Chapter 9

The first few days after Guude had dragged him back to the city personally had been confusing and hectic. Once Zisteau came and they had injected whatever Zisteau had designed into him, life had gotten a lot simpler. He woke up each day, got instructions from BDoubleO, followed them, otherwise he stayed with Guude on the top floor, standing at the door, doing nothing. Once it was around six, he'd go to his room until he felt sleepy. Then the cycle would repeat.

The last few days had been different. Instead of going back to his room at six, Guude had told him to follow him. Following as he was told to do, he found himself in a small room, a single large table set in the center of the room. Several chairs sat around the table. Lining the walls were board games of every shade and hue. Looking over the games, Shree thought idly that he didn't really think of Guude as a board game person.

As Guude sat down at the table and indicated that Shree should do the same, Pyro and BDoubleO entered the room. BDoubleO was carrying a rather large amount of alcohol, as was Pyro. The two of them dropped some of the alcohol on the table, the rest they threw in a fridge Shree hadn't noticed before.

“Hey, you didn't tell me Shree would be joining us, Guude!” BDoubleO said, staring at Shree, causing him to stare back blankly. “You know it's going to be rather boring playing against someone with no free will.

Guude sighed and rolled his eyes. “He has free will, asshole. He can play board games just fine. Just because he stands around all day staring at the wall doesn't mean he can't figure out what to do.” Shree blinked at Guude, face still blank. “Knock it off, asshole. You know we're talking about you, say something.” Shree continued to stare at Guude, not blinking. Guude sighed, his head in his hands, causing BDoubleO to laugh hysterically.

Shree pondered Guude and BDoubleO before turning to Pyro. Pyro was watching Guude and BDoubleO bickering about brainwashed people do not make good board game companions. “Pyro, what game are we playing?” Shree asked calmly. The three of them turned towards Shree, blinking.

“See, he can think!” Guude said, causing BDoubleO to sigh and roll his eyes. “Uh, I guess we'll play Settlers of Catan. It's an easy game to pick up...” Guude said as Pyro grabbed the game, setting it up.

Pyro had taken an early lead, but Shree wasn't quite sure about who was winning. He swore he saw Guude cheating, pulling cards out of thin air. Not that he say anything, that was incredibly suicidal. They played a few rounds, with Shree managing to win at least one game. As the night went on, with BDoubleO and Guude getting rather drunk, Shree felt himself grow increasingly tired. Which was odd, he normally stayed awake later then this.

Shree nodded off, his eyes heavy as he saw Guude staring at him thoughtfully. He jerked awake in surprise when he realized he was asleep. Looking around, he realized he was in his bedroom. Blinking, he shrugged, going about his normal day. That night, they played board games again, and again, he felt himself fall asleep, before suddenly waking up in his bedroom the next morning. Unsure what to do, he went on with the day. This occurred for the next several days, each the last thing he remembered before waking up was Guude staring at him. Guude never said anything, and Shree didn't wish to ask.

The night after he had been sent to give information to Etho, Guude had brought him to the board game room again, but this time there was three very large plastic cases on the table. Pyro and BDoubleO were already there, talking quietly to each other.

“Ok Shree. You seem to be ok at the games. What say you choose one of these three games?” Guude said with a smile. “What games are they?” Shree asked, confused.

“They are Arkham Horror, Twilight Imperium, and Descent. They are all pretty long games, so which ever you choose, we'll be playing for awhile. Think you'll be awake that long?” Guude said, the faintest smirk playing on his face. Shree looked at him sharply, before his eyes glazed over, looking away and at the board games. “I guess Twilight Imperium sounds nice.” Shree said, shrugging. Guude smiled, motioning for Pyro to set it up.

The game was far more difficult then he had realized. Three hours had come and gone, and they seemed no closer to a conclusion then two hours ago. As five hours approached, the first faint feeling of exhaustion prickled at the edge of his consciousness. He realized suddenly that he always seemed to feel tired three quarters of the way through the game. Frowning, he turned towards Guude.

“Why am I falling asleep?” Shree asked, before his eyes went wide and he stared down at the board. “Do you want to stay awake the whole time, Shree? I didn't know, being so young...” BDoubleO said as Shree looked up at him. “Are you suggesting...” Shree said, scratching his head. Guude nodded, grinning with pointed teeth. Shree blinked at Guude, unconcerned with the teeth. He had seen it often enough now to not care. 

Shree frowned, unsure what to do. He wasn't quite sure what they were suggesting, in all honesty. There were several possibilities. Mulling them over, he thought about what could happen if he said no. That scared him more then whatever they were doing after the game.

“I'll stay awake.” Shree said, staring at Guude. As the three of them stared at him, he suddenly wished he had chosen the other option.


	10. Chapter 10

Shree woke up in bed, staring at the ceiling. He closed his eyes, trying to forget what had happened last night. He didn't think that was going to be possible. And the likelihood of it happening again tonight, and the night after made him clench his teeth, trying to not feel anything. He couldn't stay in bed all day, eventually Guude or BDoubleO would come down and ask him why he wasn't doing his job. The click of the door opening caused his blood to run cold. 

Light fingers ran along his face, touching the small bites covering his cheeks and brow, causing him to shiver slightly, lips parting. The fingers ran across his lips, the light touch catching his breath. Opening his eyes, he looked over to see Guude kneeling by the bed.

Shree stared at Guude, eyes locked as Guude pulled his hand away. Guude's green eyes faded to black, the faint pricks of distant cold starlight leaking through his pupils, causing Shree to shiver, his pupils dilating as he lay still, staring at Guude silently.

His voice a slow drawl, Guude slowly began to speak to Shree who was staring at him raptly, unmoving. “You are going to forget what happened last night. Everything passed when the question was asked, you will forget. You will remember falling asleep and waking up in bed. You will forget I told you to forget it.” Guude paused, mouth opened slightly as he hissed, sibilant whispers cascading out, the noise settling on the floor. Shree continued to stare at Guude, ignoring the chill despite the goosebumps on his skin. 

Guude look lost in thought, as though in conflict against something internal. He closed his eyes briefly, before snapping them open, staring at Shree, a tooth filled grin plastered across his face. “You will know you've forgotten something. You will know it's happened before, and that it will happen every night. When it starts, you'll remember I took away your previous memory of it, but not why or when. You will remember it happening again and again, and that every single time, you'll forget it so you can't prepare for it until it's far too late.” Guude paused, licking his lips. “Eventually, you will come to like it. Want it even. Even then, you'll forget each time it happens so you can feel it new each time.”

Guude shivered, his eyes shrinking as the dark clouds dissipated, leaving them clear and green again. “Are you ok Shree?” Shree blinked, looking confused. “Why are you here Guude? What's happened?” Guude smiled at Shree as he stood up. “I need you to go tell Etho to get a move on it and bring the others back, Shree. Urgent it is.” Shree looked lost, before nodding at Guude. “Right. Right. I'll go do that now,” Shree said as he climbed out of bed, Guude closing the door quietly behind him.

Etho watched Shree enter the basement, the darkness making it hard for Shree to see Etho. Etho watched him briefly, a sardonic smile on his face as he stepped out of the shadows next to Shree, causing Shree to jump. “Hi Shree. What do you need today? BDoubleO let you down here now? Seen things, hm?” Shree looked at Etho, confused. “What? Guude wants you to get a move on it, his exact words.” Shree frowned, scratching his head. “Forget something, Shree?” Etho said with a grin. Shree frowned, staring at Etho before shaking his head. “It's nothing. I must go.”

Etho chuckled to himself as he watched Shree leave. Someone else was having fun, it seemed. Etho hummed quietly, shaking Nebris awake as he started to get dressed. “I thought we were staying for a few more days.” Nebris said, his voice thick from sleep. Etho shivered, licking his lips. “Ttthat was the plan before. Wwwe really should get going.” Etho said, stuttering slightly “But it's warm in bed.” Nebris said, sitting upright, yawning. Etho closed his eyes briefly before turning around to look at Nebris. 

His hair was mussed up from last night, his eyes dark from lack of full sleep. The blankets were in a messy puddle around himself. Etho pushed Nebris back into the bed as he climbed into the bed himself, pulling off the few clothes he had managed to put back on. “It can wait a few hours.” Nebris moaned as Etho started to touch him under the blanket, their bodies hot against each other.

Several hours and a failed second attempt later, Etho and Nebris finally managed to leave on the third try, making their way through the misty city. Rather then the normal rain, the weather had let up a bit, misting rather then the more normal torrential storms.

“Won't Pause be difficult to find?” Nebris asked quietly. Etho pursed his lips before nodding. “He could be. He might also come out to play when he sees us. Not really sure.” Nebris shivered in the mist. “What has he been up to?” Etho frowned, pondering. “Guude seems to think he went to spend time with Millbee, but that obviously didn't happen. We know where Beef is, so he isn't with him. So he might have gone scampering out into the wilderness.” Etho sighed, rubbing his eyes. If Pause didn't want to come out and play, this would take quite a long time.

The day wore on, the faint light shimmering through the mist fading away to darkness. “Are we going to camp for the night?” Nebris asked Etho, concerned as they kept searching. “No, we're going to keep going. Hopefully we can find him soon.” The faint sound of laughter rung through the trees. “Case in point. Come out Pause, we need to talk.” Etho said loudly. The laughter faded away, replaced by silence.

A faint rustling of leaves preceded Pause as he dropped down from the tree next to Nebris, causing Nebris to gasp suddenly. Pause frowned at Etho, his bow raised at his head. “You took my Beef and Millbee, Etho. Where are they? I want them back.” Etho raised both hands, showing he was unarmed. “Guude has both of them. He wants to talk to you anyway, so maybe you can talk to him about giving you Beef and Millbee. Although, you'd have to share Millbee with MC.” Pause shrugged, unconcerned. “Take me to them.” Etho smiled at Pause, tilting his head slightly. “Sure, let's go.”

The three of them walked back to the city, Pause uncharacteristically quiet. He seemed deep in thought, so distracted as to not even make jokes about Nebris being with Etho. 

The normally uncomfortable elevator ride was short and awkward as the three of them stepped out, Pause bounding towards Guude.

“Guude! Long time no see! Give me a hug!” Guude blinked as Pause grabbed him, hugging him. Guude hugged Pause back before his face contorted in anger as he pushed Pause away.

Guude growled as he reached around, pulling the arrow Pause had stuck in Guude's back. “You stole my Millbee and Beef, Guude! I will fucking kill you!” Pause howled as he stumbled towards Guude, uneasy on his feet after being shoved.

“You shouldn't have done that, Pause. I would have let you see them, but trying to kill me? Stupid move.” Guude said, his face white as paper, eyes huge and black, teeth sharp and vicious. Guude grabbed Pause by the neck as he charged towards him, dragging him towards the window as he howled something in an unknown tongue.

The glass disappeared in a blink of an eye as Guude shoved Pause out the window, the native clawing at the sky as he fell through the clouds, his eyes wide in terror. Guude turned towards Etho and Nebris who were still standing there, in shock. Guude hissed something under his breath, the window reappearing.

“Leave.” Guude said as he sat down in his chair, turning away from Etho and Nebris, staring out at the window. The two continued to stand for a moment before Etho grabbed Nebris by the hand, almost running out of them room.

The two of them went back to the basement, before collapsing on the bed. “Did he...?” Nebris asked, mouth dry. “Yes.” Etho answered curtly. 

“Wwhy?” Nebris asked, stammering. Etho shrugged. “We shouldn't think about it. Let's...let's just go to sleep.” Nebris whimpered as he lay back on the bed, fully clothed. The two of them stared at the ceiling for awhile, before drifting off into an empty sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Beef hating doing butchery work. He hated the amount of blood animals produced, the feeling of the fat as he hacked it off, the tediousness of deboning a creature. But Guude had told him he had to work here, no one else knew how to. And he didn't want everyone to starve, now did he. And like the kind person he was, he agreed to work for Guude.

He woke up every morning at 5am. BDoubleO would arrive with a nameless villager, arriving in a large truck filled with a fresh shipment. He'd unload the truck while BDoubleO watched, carefully to not let any blood get on his sharp suit. Once he was done, BDoubleO would leave him to his work.

And he hated it. No one to talk about, and the work was physically and mentally demanding enough to keep his mind from daydreaming. At 5pm BDoubleO would come back with a different truck and a different villager, although Beef couldn't tell, maybe it was the same villager, they all just seemed so lifeless, and load the truck with the finished product. Then Beef would get a few hours of respite sleeping, dreams filled with chicken carcasses and pork chops and faint whispering sounds and jerking awake panting for breathe. And then his day would restart.

Except today.

BDoubleO came alone, silently. He stared at Beef, his face flat, emotionless. Beef wiped his hands on his apron, frowning at BDoubleO. “Where's the truck?” Beef said, unsure what else to say. BDoubleO closed his eyes, sighing softly. “We need to talk,” BDoubleO said as he ushered Beef back into the building, the two of them sitting down on a pair of ratty chairs. BDoubleO frowned as he sat down, the look of disappointment in ruining his suit evident.

“What's up boss?” Beef said, frowning at BDoubleO. BDoubleO leaned back in the chair as he stared at Beef. 

“Pause tried to kill Guude. Pause is dead. Thought you'd want to know.” BDoubleO said flatly, expressionless. Beef blinked, shaking his head. “Stop being an ass. Why are you here?” BDoubleO continued to stare at Beef. “Pause tried to kill Guude, Pause is dead,” he said again, quietly.

Beef clenched his hands, looking away from BDoubleO. “Why would you say that? Why would you tell me that?” Beef said, starting to shake. “Because I thought you should know.” BDoubleO said calmly. “You can have the day off. I'll see you tomorrow.” Beef heard BDoubleO get up and sigh at the state of his suit, before the door quietly clicked, locking.

Beef stared down at his hands, unmoving, unspeaking.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Darkness. Falling. Leathery wings. Cuts, claws. Burning pain pain whispered words. Darkness.

Sound filtered in slowly, but the darkness remained.

“...so we can't kill him. Understand, hm?” A voice said sternly. A muffled reply came, too quiet to hear.

“No, because if he dies we have to ship him off to Beef. And if we're going to do that, I want to be there to see the psychological and physiological reactions to that. But since we won't be allowed to be there, I'd rather keep him alive and experiment on him as long as possible, hm! Oh, it looks like he might be awake, hmhm.” A sudden hand tapped at his head, causing him to wince.

“Why can't I see?” He managed to croak out. A heavy German voice spoke, amused. “The flying creatures, they like eyeballs maybe? Or maybe you aren't trying hard enough. Regardless, it looks like you won't be hunting again, will you?” _...Doc?_ “Doc? What's happening?” He said weakly.

He shouted in shock and pain as one of the two started sticking him with needles, the other voice snorting in amusement. “Relax. We aren't testing pain tolerance today, the medicine will help you feel better.” He felt himself float away, the voices flowing and ebbing as everything for once felt peaceful and calm.

“Too bad for you it won't last long, heh. Give me that scalpel, will you?” The voices disappeared as sudden pressure increased on his abdomen. He was infinitely glad at whatever they had given him, he didn't want to know what they were doing.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Guude had lied about letting MC and Millbee go back to Woolopolis. Or he had changed his mind. He had come in when they were about to leave, whispering something in Millbee's ear, causing Millbee to tremble and collapse. He then turned to MC, his eyes dark and cold, daring him to ask questions. MC blanched, scared to say anything as he leaned down to pick up Millbee. Guude had turned and left, leaving in a whirl of unanswered questions.

MC was unsure what to do, other then hold a sobbing Millbee who wasn't answering any questions. MC felt lost and alone, confused. He continued to hold onto him as Millbee cried himself to sleep, MC falling asleep after he heard Millbee snoring quietly.


	12. Chapter 12

Far out in the hinterlands, an unassuming figure poked at a small campfire, cooking what appeared to be several fish kabobs. A heavy steel ax, sharpened to a fine edge, lay on the ground next to the figure. The faint rustle of leaves caused the figure to look up, a frown etched on his face as he reached for the ax.

“Who's there? Show yourself!” He said as he clenched the ax, dropping the kabob next to the fire. A tall figure stepped out of the shadows, his skin pale and white as he sat down next to the fire, hands open to show lack of weapons.

“Sorry Jsano, didn't mean to scare you. I've been trying to find you for awhile,” TheJims said quietly, shifting as he tried to find a comfortable way to sit on the ground. Jsano relaxed, but kept the ax on his lap.

“What do you want? I thought you stayed in the city.” Jsano said nervously, fidgeting slightly. He had left the city the day after the Singularity, with no one the wiser. He was pretty sure everyone had forgotten about him, and from the little he knew of what was going on, he thought it was pretty good if no one thought of him. It made him nervous to see TheJims. He knew TheJims was an old friend of Guude, so he wasn't sure if he could trust him. Then again, he thought maybe he could consider himself a friend of Guude too. He pushed the anxiety away for the moment, listening to what TheJims had to say.

“I want you to come back to the city with me. I need your help. Everything has gone terribly wrong, and you seem smart, with the type of knowledge base that could lead people into battle. Help me?” TheJims said, nearly pleading. Jsano frowned slightly, uneasy with the request. “How do you plan on taking the city back from that...thing?” Jsano asked, concerned. And odd look passed across TheJims' face, before he smiled at Jsano.

“The two of us are easily forgotten. I was thinking the two of us could make our way into the city quietly, and dispatch Guude. With him gone, the thing should have no anchor anymore. So what do you say?” TheJims said, smiling. 

Something felt terribly wrong about this, but Jsano couldn't quite tell what. He had heard people with specific skins had become closer to their characters, but he didn't know much about TheJims' skin. Something about the whole situation was making his skin crawl.

“No. I think I'll stay here.” Jsano said suddenly, gripping the ax. TheJims sighed, standing up. “I was hoping this could be done the easy way, but it's never easy, is it.” TheJims stared at Jsano, his eyes going dark and black, the chill of the void surrounding him. “What...?” Jsano said weakly, unable to look away.

“I should just kill you, since if you break free from the control, you could go blabbing. But it doesn't want any deaths. It wants to watch people do terrible things when people think it isn't their fault. Not my choice.” TheJims hissed slightly, fangs growing larger. Jsano tried to stand, but the pressure weighing down on him kept him from moving.

“No, you know what would be better? We'll keep you with Guude. Poor Guude. Not only will you be unable to help anyone, but then we can pretend you willingly joined Guude and are helping him.” TheJims smiled as his features shifted slowly, taking on the appearance of Guude. Jsano stared in shock. “It's a good thing there aren't any other shapeshifters on the server, that would have been messy trying to broker a deal with the entity. Get up, we're going home.” TheJims said imperiously. 

Jsano stood up, dropping the ax as he shook, staring at TheJims/Guude. “People wouldn't forget you if you were around more.” TheJims/Guude glared at Jsano, frowning. “They shouldn't forget me period! I've been here since the early days, but no one remembers me. The entity told me he could make me immortal, and powerful. Unforgettable, in control. All it wanted to do was watch, give suggestions. And so it did. But Guude said it wasn't my place to make a deal with it, that he owned the server. I wasn't going to let him interfere with my chance at power. So we locked him away. I'd rather kill him, but the entity say no. If I killed him, he'd make it so I couldn't shapeshift. So we locked him away. And just to spite Guude, we pretend to be him. Make everyone believe he's the one who made a deal with the devil, so to speak. Then we brought all our friends together, so we could play. But for some reason, the entity couldn't find you, or influence you. Maybe because you're just too...boring.” 

TheJims/Guude was shaking with suppressed rage, or laughter. “We thought maybe, with your skills, you'd plan an attack. We already had everyone else that posed a threat safely taken care of, but you...what, five masters degrees, medical knowledge, all kinds of training, apparent immunity to the entity...you posed a real threat. We couldn't trust our operatives if you did know something, so we came ourself. But you...you had no plans, did you. Just sitting in the woods as your friends...your friends have so much fun with me.” TheJims/Guude started to laugh, his features turning waxen and melting, a weird amalgamation of the two, a pale unearthly light leaking from his mouth as he laughed.

TheJims flowed around the fire, staring at it briefly as the flames died out. He grabbed hold of Jsano, moving quickly towards the city. Darkness blanketed the city, making it impossible to see where they were going. TheJims had gagged Jsano while they traveled to the city, so he couldn't shout for help once they were near civilization again. They made their way down into a rabbit warren of tiny side streets, barely visible under the overcast night sky. Ducking through a doorway, Jsano stumbled around the room, surprised by the sudden light.

Lying on nearby couch was Guude, battered and bruised, both old and fresh scars marring his face. As the door slammed shut behind them, Guude turned to face them, not looking up. “Hi. What terrible things have you done in my name this time?” He said dully, lifelessly. 

TheJims smirked as he changed into Guude, mocking Guude in his own voice. “Pause was sent off to Zisteau and Doc, but I already told you that. Your little boyfriend is still trying to work out a way to find you and get out of my control, but he's doing a terrible job. Also, you have a new friend. Say hi to Jsano!” TheJims said, causing Guude to look up sharply, guilt on his face. “I was hoping to never see you again, Jsano. No offense. I was just hoping you'd get away.”

TheJims smirked as he slowly changed back to himself. “Oh, but how could I keep you from Jsano, Guude? He must have missed you so much. Don't get into too much trouble. Or do, it likes watching.” He sarcastically waved goodbye as he floated through the wall, leaving Jsano standing in shock.

“He can float through walls?” Jsano said, unsure of what else to say. Guude laughed quietly before wincing. “Yeah. I really am sorry you're here.” Guude said quietly, rubbing his hands against his legs. 

Jsano looked over at Guude, studying his scars. “So, does he come by often and do...?” Guude looked away, nodding briefly. “Whenever something goes wrong. He likely won't come by for a few days now, this is likely a coup for him. He'll be happy for awhile.”

Jsano pulled out a small bottle of water and some bandages. “I might not have any health potions, but I can still clean you up while we plan on how to murder him.” Guude stared at him, eyes filled with despair. “You only just got here. See if you still have plans after he comes back.”


	13. Chapter 13

BDoubleO rubbed his face tiredly as he looked out over the cloud covered city. It felt like everything was a blur, just rushing together in an endless parade of days, leading and doing nothing. Every time he had a moment away from Guude, something tickled the back of his brain, something painful, leaving him confused and drained. When he was with Guude, it felt less like being with an old friend, and more like being stared at under a looking glass.

GenerikB had abandoned the city long ago, living somewhere in the hinterlands. Although he should be mad at the loss, for some reason he was incredibly relieved he didn't have to talk to him, have to explain why he felt so weird. It was odd that among all the people Guude had collected or wanted to collect, GenerikB was not among them. BDoubleO shook his head as the faint pressure increased, shaking it slightly as he decided Guude was likely just jealous and didn't want to give GenerikB the chance to steal him away. The pressure released, leaving him feeling tired.

He hated sleep though. When he slept, the pain got worse. It felt as though someone was rummaging through his mind, rearranging memories and feelings and emotions, but sucked at it, as though it didn't know what it was doing, and was just smacking at his head with a hammer. So he took to staying up, awake. The only time he felt even slightly normal was when he drank and the pressure went away, but then Guude did that eye thing, and all he could think about was doing whatever Guude wanted him to do.

BDoubleO sighed, rubbing his eyes. It was all the little things. Like looking at Guude and swearing he saw someone else. The way he moved, talked. Sometimes he seemed normal, like old times. But most days...BDoubleO jumped as someone placed a hand on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw Guude staring down at him. He felt himself relax, staring into Guude's eyes.

“Hi Guude. Where have you been?” BDoubleO said slowly, tiredly. He remembered how much softer, kinder Guude seemed back in the day. Maybe the toll of running the server had been more then he had thought, a combination of wishful thinking and faulty memory. 

“Been a bit busy, taking care of a loose end. Doing ok over here?” Guude said, smiling at him. BDoubleO smiled back, standing up as he rested his head against Guude, causing him to blink, confused. “Sorry, just tired. I'm going to go sleep a bit.” Guude looked at him, concerned and...something else BDoubleO couldn't read. “Are you sure? You don't seem to take to sleeping well.” BDoubleO nodded as he made his way to the bedroom, sprawling out on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

BDoubleO fell asleep, dark dreams weighing down on him, pining him down as he whined in his sleep, twisting and turning. Guude watched him thoughtfully, his features slowly morphing in TheJims. TheJims frowned as BDoubleO cried out in his sleep.

TheJims grimaced, before closing the door quietly, leaving BDoubleO to sleep. He didn't wish to see the entity rummaging through BDoubleO's mind. A necessary evil meant to keep BDoubleO under control, he'd rather just brainwash him, but his control was not precise enough to not have BDoubleO go fleeing into the hinterlands after his friend. Perhaps he should send Etho after GenerikB, just to be safe. He exhaled slowly, shaking his head. No, it's better to let him be his hermit self in the middle of nowhere where he could do no harm.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Pause woke with a gasp, his head pounding. “Hnggg how much did I drink last night...”he moaned. Or tried to moan, his mouth was partially filled gauze, when he started to spit out. “Blech blergh what the fuck?”

An amused voice hit his ears, making him twist his head trying to figure where the person was. “You're very lucky your eyes weren't actually damaged. Just a bit..scratched.” Gaping in shock, he suddenly realized who the other voice was. “Zisteau? What the fuck is going on? Let me go!” Pause said with a growl, trying to figure out how they had tied him up as he struggled to get free.

“Hm, no. You'll just go and try kill Guude again, and that would make Guude come out here and do terrible things. And I don't want that.” Zisteau said coldly. “At least remove whatever you have covering my eyes, you dick.” Zisteau sighed, before jamming a needle into Pause, causing him to howl in pain, letting out a rather impressive string of curses.

“Relax and I'll remove the bandages.” Pause felt his head fill with light cotton candy as Zisteau cut the bandages that were wrapped around his eyes, pulling them away. The light was blinding, causing Pause to whimper softly. The blurry form a very large zombie pigman swam into view, blocking most of the light.

“What didja you poke me witth, Zzzisteau?” Pause said as his speech slurred slightly, his head still feeling like it was filled with candy. Zisteau smiled at Pause, his form blurring in and out of focus. “A little something I invented. Should make you hm, happy.” Pause tried to frown, but realized he couldn't. “Are you shurre it isn't a muscle relaxaner thing? Or maaybe something like candy? My head is made of candy, Zisteau. Oh shit don't eat my head Zeeedsteau!” Pause said with a whimper, which caused Zisteau to laugh. “I'm not going to eat your brains. Not very filling, I'd imagine.” Pause was sure it was an insult, but he just couldn't find it in himself to be mad.

Zisteau continued to stare down at him thoughtfully, not saying anything. “Why are youu staring at me, Zedykins? Ooh I like that, Zedykins. That's your new name. Did you know Guude threw me out a wwindow? He just whoop and threw me out. Theres, theres gotta be a name for that.” “Defenestration.” “Whaat? There really is a word for that? I was defen...defenestrated. Cool.” Pause whimpered softly as he began to sweat.

“He stole my Beef and my Millbee, Zeedykins. He took them and did things to them and they're mine Zisssteau. MINE.” Pause whined, pulling against the restraints. He couldn't see clear enough to tell how they had tied him up, but he was pretty sure its rather strong. “Where's Doc? Whasn't he here last time?”

“I've been over here. I've just been letting you talk.” Doc say, amused. “Ffunny thing on the way to Guude, Doc. Didja know Etho and Nebris are a couple? Sooo cute.” Pause stuttered as Doc stood up, looking down at Pause. 

Doc's face swam in and out of view as he stood over Pause, glowering at him. “That so?” Doc said coldly. “Yeash. He and Nebris were all kisshy and stuff and I really should sleep now.” Pause said as lights started to blink out, falling unconsciousness.

Doc glared at Pause, clenching his fists as Zisteau smirked at him. “Need some time off?” Zisteau asked, snorting softly. “Yes.” Doc answered curtly as he leaved the room. Zisteau looked down at Pause, rolling his eyes. “You create drama without even trying, hm.”

Zisteau hummed happily to himself as he mulled over the various instruments arrayed around him, carefully picking them up and discarding them before settling on a select few with which to use on Pause while Doc was away.


	14. Chapter 14

Etho groaned quietly as he rolled out of bed. He hated waking up sometimes. He was being careful to not wake Nebris before he could get into the shower. Otherwise the already late start to the morning would get much later. 

Etho sighed to himself as he turned the hot water on, mumbling about how much noise the pipes made down here in the basement. He was sure the pipes were sentient some days, and knew when he wanted them to be quiet. They were never quiet when he wanted them to be.

He shivered as he stepped into the lukewarm shower, turning the heat up until it was warmer. As he started to scrub up, he was too distracted to hear someone enter the room. He nearly jumped out of his skin when a hand pulled the shower curtain back. “Hey why didn't...” “Holy fff oh oh. Hi Nebris. You...hi.” Nebris blinked sleepily at Etho who was busy trying to not kneel over from shock.

Nebris yawned, scratching his head while Etho regained his composure. “Why didn't you tell me you were awake, Etho?” Nebris said slowly, tiredly. Etho bit his lip as he stared at Nebris. “Because I wanted to actually take a shower today.” Nebris frowned, confused, before blushing as he realized what Etho was saying. “Oh. I can go back to bed for awhile if you want.

Etho frowned at Nebris, causing Nebris to blush more. “Nebris, get in here.” Etho said, licking his lips. When Nebris hesitated, Etho pulled him into the shower, pushing him against the wall. “You have no idea how irresistible you are in the morning, do you.” Etho kissed Nebris as hot water cascaded down on the two of them, not caring.

The two of them exited the shower some time later, shivering as the water had turned cold. “Stupid water pipes. Stupid sentient water pipes.” Etho grumbled as he dried off, Nebris following, shivering, teeth chattering from the cold. “Whwhat are we doing today, Etho?” Nebris said, wrapping himself in a towel.

Etho frowned as he dried his hair, before starting to rummage through clean clothing. “We're going to go talk to Mhykol. Apparently, he hasn't been sending in reports. Guude thinks he might be trying to use his reputation of invisibility to actually go invisible, which is amusing, because he's easy to find. He's become too well known as being invisible, so he's not so invisible anymore, so it sort of backfired.” Etho smirked slightly at that, before frowning. “We better get a move on it. While it's in the city, it's not terribly close.”

The two of them made their way quietly across the city, the downpour drenching the two of them. “So, what does Mhykol do now?” Nebris asked quietly, causing Etho to blink. “Oh yes. You don't remember. He does mostly secretarial work or something. Or maybe it was mail. He takes pieces of paper, and moves them to other places.” Etho said, shrugging, unconcerned.

They turned a corner, finding themselves in a dark alley. “I don't remember this being here before.” Etho said, concerned. He pulled out a small map, tracing the route with his finger. Frowning, he shoved the map into a back pocket, turning around. “Yeah, we went the wrong way. But uhm hm...hi?” Etho said as he came face to face with Doc. “Aren't you busy helping Zisteau, Doc?” Etho said, unconcerned.

Doc glared at the two of them, hands fidgeting in his pocket. “Did you need something, Doc?” Nebris asked, confused. Doc turned towards him, glaring. “You. You shouldn't be with Etho. You should be off with, I don't know, MC or something.” Nebris blushed, gaping. “Hey, what is your pro...” Etho cut Nebris off, holding one hand up. “What are you doing here, Doc. What do you want.” Etho said, tilting his head slightly.

Doc sighed, pulling out a gun. Etho blinked, surprised. “Well, that's an unexpected turn of events. You plan on killing the two of us?” Nebris started to try and inch behind Etho nervously. Doc turned the gun towards Nebris, frowning. “No, just Nebris.” Doc shrugged as he fired the gun twice, once at Nebris, then at Etho as Etho started forward to punch him. “Eventually...” Doc frowned, pulling the darts out of the two now unconscious people. “I might be a monster, but I'm not going to kill someone out in the streets. Uncouth.” He put two fingers in his mouth, whistling loudly.

Two pigmen skulked out from the shadows, looking at him annoyed. “Grab them, follow me.” They both snorted, annoyed, but picked up the two limp forms.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A phone rang across town. “Hello Zisteau. How goes business?” Guude said, smiling happily. His smile quickly fell, replaced by a vicious grimace filled with teeth. “Doc did what? Why? Oh for gods sake. Keep them there. Don't let him harm either of them. Oh, I see. Yes, that's good for now. I'll be out there tomorrow.” Guude hung up the phone, hissing in anger as he morphed into TheJims. 

TheJims paced back and forth in annoyance, scratching the side of his face as he thought fast. As long as Zisteau had Nebris safe, he'd deal with the fallout from Etho being kidnapped later. The fact that Doc went off and did something like this was far more annoying then having to actually deal with it. He had let Doc on too long of a leash. Less people outside his control, the better.

Hissing quietly, he morphed back into Guude as he picked up the phone. “Hi Zisteau. Change of plans. Fill Doc with the stuff. I don't want him thinking of anything at all for a long time. Release Etho and Nebris, don't touch them. Send them back here. Actually, send them back in a few hours. Still don't touch them or there will be hell. Don't cop an attitude, pigman. You now have two people to play with, just do this.” He slammed the phone down, growling.

He clenched his fists, before slowly exhaling as he made his way out of the building, making his way towards a small room. There would be hell to pay, and now he had two people to take it out on.


	15. Chapter 15

Jsano and Guude were talking quietly, distracting themselves from lack of food and boredom with quiet chatter of previous builds, how they met, pets, anything. Jsano had his back to the door when Guude suddenly went quiet and pale as a ghost, looking down at the table. Jsano turned around to see Guude, no, TheJims glowering at the two of them. Guude closed his eyes, shaking. Jsano started to say something when TheJims stared at him, eyes pitch black and cold.

“Stand up, Jsano.” Jsano felt pressure weighing down on his mind as he silently cursed to himself as he stood up, staring at TheJims. “Go sit in the corner. Don't talk.” Jsano felt himself walking and sitting down in the corner, staring silently, angrily at TheJims. TheJims sneered at him, unconcerned. 

TheJims pulled a potion out of his jacket, placing it on the table. Jsano couldn't quite tell what kind of potion it was other then not a splash potion. The idle thought of grabbing the potion and smashing it on TheJims face crossed Jsano's mind, before he held his head, groaning. “Bad idea, Jsano. Now be good and stop thinking such rude thoughts.” TheJims said coldly, still staring at Guude.

“Am I really going to have to force you to drink it? Be good so Jsano doesn't have to see you cry so soon.” TheJims said, sneering as Guude continued to stare down at the table. Guude shook slightly, grabbing the potion, drinking it, before groaning and coughing. From the slight smoke, Jsano thought it might have been a long lasting regeneration potion, but why would TheJims give Guude that?

TheJims walked around the table, pulling Guude up. “I wonder how long you'll last with someone watching. Will you last longer because you don't want him to see you break down, or will you fall apart quicker, unable to keep the facade up?” Guude remained quiet, desperately trying to not look at Jsano. TheJims smirked, throwing Guude against the wall which he hit with a sickening thump, the distinct sound of something breaking, falling to the ground. He pulled himself up, sitting on the ground, biting his lip as the faint sound of things snapping back into place could barely be heard. Jsano closed his eyes, not wanting to see what TheJims was going to do.

A great pressure weighed down on Jsano, causing him to open his eyes and see TheJims standing over him. “Oh no, don't go closing your eyes already. We're just getting started. If I catch you closing your eyes again, I'll tear your eyelids off.” Jsano went pale, swallowing nervously. TheJims frowned at Jsano, making sure he was still watching as he strode over to Guude, picking him up. 

“So what will it be today, Guude? What do you think we should do today, oh great leader? Should I tear your skin off slowly and watch it regrow? Cut out your eyes? Break all your bones one at a time? Or maybe just show you what you'd look like as a half spider half Guude thing.” TheJims laughed as his body morphed, several long prickly legs sprouting from his back. Jsano couldn't see what his face looked like, but from the terrified panicked whimpering coming from Guude as he back away into a corner, he could only imagine.

TheJims grabbed Guude, pining him against the wall as Guude continued to whimper, his breath shallow and quick. “What did I tell you about running, Guude?” Guude cried out in terror as TheJims held him in place with his spider legs, leaning in close, breathing heavily on him. “I think I will cut out your eyes. I have some little friends who you can get intimate with while they regrow.”

Guude was sobbing now, trying to pull away. TheJims sneered as he flicked his hand, the fingers growing pointed and sharp, as he reached towards Guude's eyes.

“Stop!” Jsano managed to shout, holding his head. TheJims whipped around, dropping Guude on the ground. Jsano blanched as he saw TheJims face. He looked like Guude, but had large black mandibles sprouting from his jaw, his eyes large multifacted discs, still a bright green colour. TheJims grabbed Jsano, pulling him upright. “You will remain silent and watch.” TheJims said as he pulled another bottle from his pack, popping the lid open as he forced the contents down Jsano's throat. Everything seemed to waver. He could feel his body prepare to mend any wounds. “Unfortunate for you, this potion is a bit weak. It'll take longer then normal to regrow your eyelids.

Jsano shrieked in pain as TheJims cut his eyelids off with his claws before dropping him to the ground. Blood coated his eyes, covering everything in a gruesome crimson hue. The sharp pain changed to a dull throb as he felt the potion start to very slowly work. “Watch and STAY SILENT.” TheJims growled as he went and grabbed Guude again from where he was curled in a ball on the ground, sobbing, trying to not throw up.

“Where were we?” TheJims said as he held Guude again. “Oh right.” Guude howled as TheJims tore at his eyes, rendering him blind. Jsano tried to look away, do something, but felt pined in place. TheJims smirked as he said something unintelligible. Creepy crawly spiders and insects made their way out of the cracks in the room , massing in a horde around TheJims. TheJims dropped Guude on the ground, waving a hand at him. The insects began to swarm across Guude, causing him to sob, clawing at himself to try and remove them.

TheJims turned towards Jsano, who shrank away from him. TheJims leaned down next to Jsano, his features slowly morphing to match Jsano's own face. Very quietly he whispered to Jsano. “I'd wipe your memories, but I want you to remember everything. I want you to replay this over and over again as you try to sleep. I want you to remember what happens when you don't do what I say. Have fun.” He hissed quietly before leaving the room. 

Jsano stayed still for a moment, watching the door, waiting for him to return. When he didn't, he made his way over to Guude who was still clawing at himself, sobbing. He pulled Guude up, whispering to him as he pulled the insects off of him, killing them. When they were all dead, he pulled Guude over to the small couch where the two of them collapsed, Guude's sobs slowed to a steady whimpering instead.

Jsano stared at the ceiling as his eyes slowly healed, before he closed his eyes, hoping that someone somewhere had a plan.


	16. Chapter 16

Etho woke up, his head pounding. The overwhelming scent of disinfectant filled his nose and mouth, making him groan. “Oh, you're awake. That's good, hm.” Zisteau stared down at him, working his jaw back and forth.

“I do hope you aren't planning on trying to dissect me, Zedsteau. Guude would be very unhappy with that.” Etho said coldly, trying to look intimidating. Zisteau snorted dismissively. “I already know I'm not allowed to touch you. Luckily, Doc managed to drug you up right good, so all I have to do is wait and watch the hilarity unfold. No touching involved, heh.” Zisteau snickered, looking down at Etho.

Etho frowned, rubbing the back of his head. He wasn't bound or anything, just seated by himself in a small room. Alarm shot through him. “Where's Nebris.” Zisteau snickered again. “He's fine. He's still out, but he'll be fine, heh. Don't worry, I can't touch him either.” Zisteau sighed, sounding sad. “What's stopping me from leaving?” Etho asked, looking around himself. Zisteau grinned at that. “General lack of ability to walk, most likely. If you mean am I going to stop you, oh no no. Go ahead, walk out. Nebris is right across the hall, hm. If you can get the both of you out, more power to you.” His grin widened, teeth glittering slightly.

Etho shrugged, standing up. Everything seemed to waver as he felt his sense of balance go out the window. He struggled to take a step before he found himself staring up at the ceiling. Zisteau looked down at him. Zisteau picked him up, setting him back in the chair. “You have been a good guest, so before you sober up, I'll give you the opportunity of a life time. Guude is mad at Doc. Very very mad. So mad he's given him to me, hm. Would you like to watch me dissect him?” Etho stared at Zisteau. “...no. I don't think I'd like seeing that at all.” Zisteau shrugged. “Fine. I'll be busy. You should regain balance in an hour, and sense of direction...oops, well, maybe never that, but you won't get lost in a straight hallway in about two hours.” Zisteau said snickering, leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

Zisteau made his way down the narrow corridor, before opening a heavy iron blast proof door. Closing it behind him, he hummed happily. He pondered the mechanical creeper he had tied to the wall. Several large blast shields were situated around him. While he had never shown any indication that he could explode like his less mechanical brethren, Zisteau didn't wish to take that chance.

“Time to wake up, Doc.” Zisteau said as he attached several slow drip iv's to Doc arms, attaching them under the metal so they couldn't be easily removed. Doc groaned, slowly coming to. “Let me go.” Doc said, grumbling unhappily. 

Zisteau laughed happily, before falling quiet, smirking at Doc. “Oh no. See, you pissed off Guude, hm? You pissed him off so badly he's letting me do whatever I want to you. Pause has been interesting for awhile, but you, oh you.” Zisteau leaned against the operating table, sighing happily as he rested his snout on his palm. “A mechanical cyborg creeper thing that doesn't explode somehow? You are by far the most interesting thing I've been allowed to dissect.”

Zisteau laughed as he pulled out an incredibly sharp surgeons knife. “Now stay still. This should hurt a lot.” Zisteau plunged the knife into Doc's stomach, opening him up imprecisely. Doc howled in pain, cursing at Zisteau. “Oh do calm down, one of the iv's is filled with pain suppressants. Not good ones, but suck it up.” Zisteau said as he started pulling at Doc's organs, pulling the skin and fat away to look inside.

Doc continued to hurl curses at Zisteau as he rooted around inside him. Zisteau pulled away from Doc, the tip of his snout coated in blood. Grabbing a length of rubber tubbing, he roughly created a gag which he shoved into Doc's mouth. “Be quiet. I'm busy here.” Zisteau grumbled, before starting to root through his innards again.

Doc gasped helplessly, unable to speak. The pain was excruciating, the dull drip of the pain suppressants barely able to keep him conscious. Zisteau continued to talk to him, telling him what he was doing. Tears poured down his face as Zisteau ignored him, clipping things back, examining them before putting them back.

As he continued to write down notes and talk to Doc, the faint sound of rapping came against the metal blast door. He dropped his instruments, going to the door.

Etho was holding Nebris upright, barely able to stand upright himself. “Hi Etho. Decided to come and see the dissection? Your friend Doc is quite interesting, hm.” Zisteau said, grinning. Etho frowned, shaking his head. “We're leaving. Thought you'd want to know in case you have traps around the place.” Zisteau shook his head. “Are you sure you don't want to come and see? He's really quite fascinating, heh.”

Etho shook his head before looking slightly somber. “Tell him if he's ever allowed out of here alive to come and see me, but only if he's going to be nice about it.” Zisteau shrugged. Etho frowned as he limped away with Nebris.

Zisteau closed the door, making his way back to Doc. “Your friend Etho just left. Don't think he'll be coming back anytime soon. He and Nebris seemed quite upset with you.” Zisteau said, staring down at Doc. Doc closed his eyes, tears pouring down his face. “Are you going to die from a broken heart? Let me know if you are, I've never seen anyone die from that before.” Zisteau smirked as Doc remained silent. “Oh right, you can't talk because of the gag. Just nod or something.”

Zisteau turned back towards slowly taking Doc apart and putting him together as Doc lay silent. Faint groaning echoed across the room causing Zisteau to snicker to himself. He'd have to deal with Pause soon. No amount of drugs had kept the surly native from hurling curses every time he woke up. Maybe seeing Doc like this would do him some good. Zisteau scratched his snout, thinking to himself.

Pause came to, eyes blinking, slowly clearing up. He was gagged, still tied up. As his eyesight became clear enough to see, he gasped in shock. Zisteau had Doc opened up, skin and tissue everywhere as he pulled him apart. Zisteau looked over, a crimson grin on his face. “So good of you to join us. Don't worry, you'll get a turn later.” 

Pause closed his eyes as Zisteau started to laugh.


	17. Chapter 17

Far out in the hinterlands, two people sat in a small cave, cooking dinner.

“You still mad?” Avidya said, leaning against the wall, eating the fish on a stick that was dinner. 

Anderz growled as he sat down, frowning at his own fish dinner. “We should be fighting them, not hiding in the bushes with a madman! We have more then enough diamond gear and swords, we could storm in and kill them now!” Anderz said, throwing the fish into the fire as he grumbled. 

Avidya closed his eyes, before tilting his head at Anderz. “Do you really think that murdering Guude would work? Do you really think that killing those he's ensnared will set them free and sane? And what about GenerikB? Just leave him out here to go mad without our help? Take him with us and run the risk of him going nuts when he sees BDoubleO?” 

Anderz sighed unhappily. “No, I don't. But I hate this sitting and waiting and hoping we can figure out a way of getting rid of this...this thing that is pretending to be Guude. I still don't think that's Guude. That...thing in the sky must have killed him and is just...wearing his skin.”

Avidya shrugged. “It's a good theory. Hopefully not true, I'd rather Guude not be dead, personally.” He stretched out, before standing up, making his way to where GenerikB was seated. As much as it pained him to do so, Anderz was right in needing to keep GenerikB tied up. Otherwise he kept trying to run away, or worse kill himself or the two of them. He was currently sulking, eating his fish in silence. 

“Any better today?” Avidya asked. No response. He sighed softly. He hoped his idea worked. They had given GenerikB a normal golden apple days ago. He had almost snapped out of whatever Guude had placed over the others, before slipping back into his ramblings and incoherent anger.

Which is why they were currently searching for gold in the hopes of making better golden apples then the pale imitations they had first used. With Anderz help, it had gone faster then Avidya has hoped. While not easy, they had managed to scrape together the seventy two gold needed. They were now just waiting for it to smelt in the small oven. They didn't want to risk setting up more then one oven in the off chance the smoke would alert someone.

Throughout the night, Anderz and Avidya took turns tending the furnace, until finally the last bar was smelted in the small hours of the morning as Avidya sat next to the warm furnace, yawning. Pulling the cooling bar out, he quickly went to work smushing the gold together in large blocks, before waking Anderz up. Together, they placed an apple on the crafting table, surrounding it with the lumpy blocks of gold. The two of them held their breath as the crafting table folded around the items, before transmuting them and spitting out a glowing golden apple. The both looked at each other before turning towards GenerikB.

“GenerikB, you like delicious golden apples, right?” Avidya asked, holding the apple in front of himself. GenerikB growled at them, clearly confused. “Would you like a golden apple? It's very tasty.” Staring warily at the two of them, GenerikB grabbed the apple, eating it eagerly. 

GenerikB howled in shock, curled up into a ball as he started to glow brightly. Groaning slightly, he uncurled, hands still twitching as he looked up at Avidya and Anderz. 

“...why are the two of you staring at me like I might stab you at any moment?” GenerikB asked, confused. Avidya and Anderz both relaxed, sighing softly.

“Welcome back to the world of the...I'd say sane, but we're not sure we're sane. How are you doing, Genny?” Avidya asked, concerned. GenerikB shook his head before trying to stand up.

“Why do you have me tied up? Are you two into things I really don't want to know about or remember?” GenerikB asked, confused. Anderz laughed, cutting the ropes off of GenerikB.

“You've been a bit of a dick, trying to murder us, yourself, random trees. It was for your own good.” Anderz said, laughing.

“So what's up?” GenerikB asked, sitting by the fire, yawning slightly.

Avidya stretched out, pondering what to tell him. “Guude was taken over by some kind of flying spaghetti monster, is eating peoples souls and making them insane, we ran away to regroup but not because we were scared but because highly outnumbered, found you raving mad in a cave, gave you a golden apple, and poof, you're better!” Avidya sighed softly as Anderz blurted that all, nodding emphatically. GenerikB stared at Anderz, gaping.

“Uh, Avidya, want to confirm that uh...story?” GenerikB said, blinking at the two of them. Avidya nodded, inclining his head. “He's telling the truth. What do you remember, Genny?”

GenerikB pursed his lips, thinking hard. “I remember seeing the sky open, then...losing time in nothing, then you two dolts staring down at me like I was about to stab you.” Avidya sighed. “You've lost a lot of time.”

Avidya and Anderz spent the next hour catching GenerikB up to speed with what had happened while he lost time. They outlined their new plan to mine copious amounts of gold in order to try and rescue everyone else.

“That's going to take far too long. Can't we just make potions?” GenerikB asked, frowning. Avidya and Anderz looked at each other, silent.

“Wellll we could, but we'd have to go to the nether. We've been there. We...we really don't want to go back.” Anderz said, uncharacteristically nervous. Avidya just stared up at the ceiling quietly. “We'd rather not go back.” Avidya said quietly, morose. 

“But you want us to gather at least...at least...”GenerikB frowned as he tried to figure out exactly how much gold it was going to take to heal everyone. “One thousand seven hundred and twenty eight gold.” Avidya said with a sigh.

“Which is why I keep saying we should just attack! But Avidya doesn't want to just kill Guude and hope that releases everyone, so we're stuck with mining gold.” Anderz said, grumbling.

GenerikB rubbed his hands together as he watched Anderz continue to harangue Avidya. “Let's go to the nether. If it looks too dangerous, we'll just pop right back out, and start mining, ok?” Avidya and Anderz fell silent before nodding. 

“Fine. We'll try and go in quickly, get just enough to start making potions, and get out as quick as possible. We'll go tomorrow morning.” Avidya said, breathing slowly. “Anderz, get the weapons and armor ready. I'll get food together.” 

Anderz frowned, staring at GenerikB. “If things go bad again, I'm blaming it on you, hermit.” GenerikB frowned at him, confused. He still wasn't sure why they didn't want to go into the nether. How much had it changed?


	18. Chapter 18

Cold fingers of doubt crept into GenerikB's mind as he watched Avidya and Anderz set up the nether portal. They were outfitted in diamond armour and weapons, as was he, but despite this, the two of them looked incredibly solemn and morose.

Anderz placed the last block of obsidian in the frame, standing back from the portal, panting. Avidya carefully lit in, jumping back as the obsidian quivered and fluxed, before the distinct purple haze filled the empty cavity, humming ominously. GenerikB shivered slightly and the unnatural sounds the portal made.

“Before we go in, come here you two.” Avidya said as he pulled a small jar of paint from his pack. “I don't want to lose either of you, we're painting the front and back of the chestpieces with a mark.” 

Anderz nodded emphatically, standing in front of Avidya. “Paint a god damned viking war ship! I'll show those...”Anderz trailed off as Avidya rolled his eyes, painting a vaguely blobby “warship” on Anderz armor.

“What do you want on your armor, Genny?” Avidya asked as GenerikB got ready to get painted. “I don't know, a large H for hermit maybe?” Avidya nodded, painting a much neater H on the front and back of GenerikB's armor.

Anderz grabbed the paint, putting a rough blob thing on the front and back of Avidya. “There, that zen thing you like!” Anderz said, clearly proud of his work. Avidya sighed, before turning towards the portal apprehensively. 

“We all go in at the same time. Yes, it'll be uncomfortable. We stick together. We go quickly. No wandering around. If we do get separated, try and make your way back to the portal and stay there until we're all back there.” Avidya frowned, grabbing Anderz and GenerikB's hands, stepping into the portal.

The absolutely searing heat of the nether hit Avidya in the chest like a freight train, causing him to double over in pain, gasping. Groaning, he pulled himself upright, blinking as he tried to see through the haze.

He sighed silently to himself as he looked around and saw Anderz and GenerikB nowhere to be seen. Turning around, he groaned as he realized he was nowhere near the nether portal. He had no idea how he managed to get lost in the nether without even moving. This was exactly what he feared would happen again.

Sitting down as he collected his thoughts, his mind wandered to what happened the last time the two of them had gone into the nether at Anderz insistence. They had both gotten lost almost immediately. Anderz had been taken hostage by the pigmen, who by all accounts were far more sentient then they should be. They had been taking him to...someone. At first, they had thought the pigmen might have been trying to take Anderz to Zisteau, but they didn't seem to know who they were talking about. They had managed to escape, but Avidya was still nervous that the pigmen apparently had managed to make a society, have a hierarchal structure, and a king somewhere. Who wasn't Zisteau. He just hoped Anderz and GenerikB were safe together.

A heavy hoof fell upon his shoulder, making him look upwards sharply. A patrol of pigmen had found him already as he tried to catch his breath. He closed his eyes as he stood up slowly.

“Now gentlemen, I do hope we'll be polite this time? I am in no position to take all five...ok, seven of you at once. So let's just go wherever you were going to take me anyway?” One of the zombie pigmen snorted, holding out his hand. “I think I can walk without assistance, thank you.” The pigman snorted and said something in the high pitched squeeling tongue. Avidya felt the flat of a heavy blade hit him on the back of the head, causing his helmet to ring, sending him flying to the ground. As he rolled over, the crackle of magic cast darkness over his eyes. His idly thought that magic was very unlike zombie pigmen as he felt them tie him up.

Waking up, Avidya found himself in a small netherbrick cell, stripped of his armor and weapons. Rubbing his head, he found it sore and tender. Someone had wrapped a bandage around it carefully. He pursed his lips, trying to think of what to do. He really didn't want to wait for Anderz and GenerikB, because he knew exactly what kind of plan Anderz would have. It didn't fill him with confidence.

“Oh, you're awake! Delightful!” A hollow voice rang through the chamber, making him look up. There were security cameras in the cell. “Pigmen don't use security cameras.” Avidya said calmly, frowning. “You're right, they don't. I do though! Hard to get security cameras here, but with a bit of help and a lot of stealing, I got them here!” 

Avidya sat down crossed leg, closing his eyes as he quietly began counting slowly. “I always thought the cool collected Avidya thing was just a facade, but man, you really are all zen, aren't you?” Avidya ignored the voice, continuing to count slowly. He frowned as he opened his eyes.

“You shouldn't be on the server at all, Vechs. What are you doing here?” Avidya almost smirked as he heard no reply.

A soft whine filled the room as the steel door opened, revealing Vechs. He stood frowning at Avidya, two zombie pigmen standing behind him. “You weren't suppose to guess that soon. That's no fun!” Vechs said, pouting. 

Avidya tilted his head, frowning. “You didn't answer my question.” Vechs frowned at Avidya, before snapping his fingers at the pigmen who entered the the cell, going to pick Avidya up. Avidya shook his head, standing up by himself. The four of them made their way down the hall, coming to a larger cell with a table in it. Vechs indicated Avidya should sit as he himself sat in one of the chairs, the two pigmen standing sentry by the door, watching Avidya suspiciously. 

“Well, since I already have your other two friends, I guess there's no loss in telling you stuff. GenerikB isn't talking, and Anderz...” Vechs sighed, a faint smile on his lips. “Anderz is unconscious again because otherwise he'd be too much of a handful, even for all the pigmen ever. He did take out four pigmen by himself before the rest overpowered him. They were pissed at that.” The pigmen grunted slightly, grumbling unhappily. Vechs frowned at them, causing them to shut up.

Vechs leaned back in the chair before flailing slightly, grabbing the table to catch balance as Avidya grinned at him. “Don't think I'm not willing to do terrible things to you, Avidya. Just because you're the only person who can hopefully hold a conversation doesn't mean I'm not willing to cause you a lot of pain if you don't listen to me.” 

Avidya shrugged, indifferent. “You say this all the time, Vechs. You're more of a disobedient puppy then the monster you pretend to be. If I'm scared of anything on this server, it most certainly isn't you.” Avidya smiled at Vechs, calm and serene. 

Vechs growled at Avidya, growing angrier. “Should have just left you in the cell. Take him back. Starve him for awhile. You have no idea what's happening with Guude or the others, do you? We'll see how zen you can stay when you learn just what's happened in your absence.” Avidya frowned slightly, but didn't say anything as the pigmen escorted him from the room.

Vechs frowned, tapping his fingers against the heavy stone table. Guude had asked him to come to the server early, a surprise for Zisteau. When he had, instead of being in spawn, he found himself here in the nether. When he tried to exit, pigmen had grabbed him and pulled him away from the portal in time to see the portal quake and hum with an angry presence. The pigmen seemed to like him for some reason. The told him what was happening in the overworld. So now he was stuck here, safe from the entity the pigmen told him they saw. But stuck. And without Zisteau to talk to. Maybe Avidya would tell him why Anderz was ranting about golden apples, and why GenerikB looked like someone had hit him over the head with a hammer a few times.

He sighed softly. He didn't think Avidya would believe him if he told him he just wanted to help everyone. It wasn't a lie. He just wasn't going to tell him he wanted to take over also. Pursing his lips, he grumbled as he went to find Anderz and hear him rant more. Maybe something he said would make sense. Somehow. And if it didn't, at least angry viking rants were more amusing to listen to then watching Avidya sit and be all...calm.


	19. Chapter 19

Anderz woke with a howl. “I will kill all you motherfucking pigmen! All of you! You might be taller then me, and maybe stronger wait no! You're not stronger! I will cleave your skulls in and...”Anderz trailed off when he realized there were no pigmen in the cell with him. Looking around, he found he was tied to a small metal chair. Which just made him madder. “What, you fuckers couldn't put up with one viking, so you take his weapons away and tie him up! You you...you're pathetic! Motherfuckers!” A soft chuckle came from behind him. 

“You are a lot more fun to watch then Avidya.” At the mention of Avidya, Anderz started cursing again. “What did you do to Avidya? You better not have fucking touched him, or I'll tear you apart!” 

The voice sighed. “You are in no position to hurl threats, Anderz. Do calm down.” Vechs stepped around the chair, staring down at the seething viking. “He's perfectly fine. Maybe a bit hungry, but who isn't these days? Hard to grow food in the nether, you know.”

Anderz frowned, staring up at the goggled man in front of him. “You're one of Zisteau's flings, aren't you?” 

Vechs frowned. “One of? He's been sh...no. Stop that. You. Why are you lot here?” Vechs asked, staring at Anderz as Anderz smirked at him.

“Oh, I dunno, just thought we'd come and visit the pigmen again, have a picnic, maybe dance amongst the tulips.” Anderz replied, sneering. Vechs sighed, rubbing his temples.

“Can't you just answer the question? I've done nothing to make you think I'm going to do anything other then help you. I didn't tell Guude you're here, or send you back. None of the pigmen have hurt you or your friends. Can't you just tell me why you're here? I might even be able to help you. I do have a veritable army of pigmen and minions. Well, minion in the singular. Come on.” Vechs said, hands out in a display of compassion.

Anderz frowned. He was sure Vechs was up to something. He remembered Zisteau talking about Vechs when they went out drinking sometimes. He silently cursed, trying to remember what Zisteau had told him about the guy. Something about ruthlessly smart and dangerously...something? Deviant? Devious? Something. But there wasn't much to be done if Vechs had GenerikB and Avidya already.

He sighed slightly “Fine, yah. We were trying to make potions. Healing stuff makes people less Guude like. We think. Not exactly all scientific or whatever, we don't have a lab like you have I guess. GenerikB was Guudelike, then we shoved super magical golden apple in his face, and he stopped being Guudelike. Now let us go, we gotta go and get potion making stuff.” 

Vechs smiled at him. “Was that so hard? Hell, I'll help you! It'll take a lot of trips, but we can make plenty of potions! It would have saved you a lot of time if you had just told me sooner instead of upsetting my Zistykin friends. If I let you go, are you going to attack them? Because trust me, they will overwhelm you, mister Viking.”

Anderz shook his head, defeated. “I'm not suicidal. I won't attack as long as you let me see Avidya and GenerikB.” 

Vechs nodded, smiling. He opened the door, allowing four pigmen to be seen. “Just a precaution. I don't want you trying anything when we go get your friends.” Anderz sneered at the pigmen, who sneered back, cracking their knuckles. Vechs frowned, shaking his head. The pigmen harrumphed loudly, before ignoring Anderz. Vechs carefully untied Anderz, before allowing him to stand up. “Now give me back the dagger you already lifted from me, and we'll be on our way,” Vechs said with a smirk. Anderz grumbled before handing Vechs his dagger back. He was tempted to shove it into Vechs' throat, but the pigmen were already staring at him suspiciously.

The pigmen marched Anderz down the hall as Vechs lead them through what appeared to be a maze, before they found themselves in a large library. The walls were lined with rows upon rows of books. Despite not caring too much for books, Anderz let out a low whistle with just how many there were. The floor was paved in smooth quartz, the walls that could be seen made from heavy netherbricks. Several cats roamed around the place, highly indifferent to either the pigmen or the humans in their midst. Vechs turned towards Anderz, hands clasped behind himself.

“Be good and stay here? I'll go get Avidya and GenerikB. Please don't do anything stupid. It would be incredibly bad for you to do stupid things.” Vechs inclined his head as he left the room, leaving Anderz alone with four pigmen and a lot of cats.

Vechs sighed as he went to get GenerikB. GenerikB had not been listening much. He seemed to be blaming their horrible trip in the nether on himself. “GenerikB! Genny? Wake up. I have your friends, they'd like to see you.” GenerikB looked up sharply, frowning at Vechs.

“Are they alright?” GenerikB asked quietly. “Other then Anderz hurling curses at an incredible pace, yes. Yes they are fine. Come on! We need to go so we can all discuss plans, and that can only happen when we're all together!” 

Vechs dropped of GenerikB with Anderz, leaving a few more pigmen there to keep an eye on the two of them. GenerikB didn't seem inclined to go on a murdering rampage, but he didn't trust Anderz at all.

“Avidya, time to go!” Vechs said as he opened the door to Avidya's cell. Vechs blinked, before closing his eyes, sighing. “Avidya, why are you doing...what...you know what, I don't want to know. Just come on, Anderz and GenerikB are in the library, we're all going to talk calmly and peaceful and all that stuff you like.”

“Since starving me elicited no answers, I will assume you managed to cajole Anderz into telling you what we were doing.” Avidya said as he stood up, frowning at Vechs.

“Yes. Yes he did. If you had just told me, we could have started working on helping each other so much sooner!” Vechs said cheerfully. Avidya frowned, concerned. He hadn't told Vechs because he didn't trust Vechs to not have his own plans. But what was done was done. They'd deal with Vechs later if they had to. For now, they'd deal with the bigger issue.

Avidya and Vechs both sighed as they walked into the library. GenerikB and Anderz were having what appeared to be, for lack of better term, a book fight. They were chasing each other around the room throwing old books at each other while pigmen tried valiantly to put books away. The cats lay cowering under tables and chairs, afraid of the scary madmen that were shouting inane things at each other.

“Stop it you two.” Avidya said calmly. Unfortunately, he was drowned out by the shouting Vechs was doing. “YOU TWO KNOCK IT OFF RIGHT NOW. THOSE ARE PRICELESS TOMES AND I'LL...I'll skin you alive if you don't stop.” He said quietly as they both stared at him.

“Right. Sit down everyone.” Vechs said, coughing slightly as they all took seats. Anderz fidgeted nervously, frowning at Vechs. “So, Anderz told me you gentlemen are trying to make potions and fix Guude and all the rest! You could have told me this earlier, then We could have started sooner! Do you think I want to keep you three here forever? That would be so much of a hassle, not to mention I think the pigmen would eventually murder Anderz in his sleep on sheer principle, haha!” Vechs coughed when the three of them frowned at him. “Riiight, no jokes. Ok.”

Vechs rubbed his hands together, murmuring to himself. “Onto business then. I already have a platoon of pigmen making splash potions. The gunpowder and melons were a bit difficult to get in the nether, but heh heh, managed to get hold of it. Likely would rather not ask. No, really. Don't ask.” Vechs said, frowning at Anderz who started to say something. Anderz glared at him before shrugging, leaning back in his chair.

“Now, Guude knows all of you are missing, right? Going to be searching for you? I'm going to suggest you three search for people not directly related to Guude. People elsewhere. I'll sneak in when Guude is distracted trying to figure out who is sneaking around spawn and trying to find you three. Boom, splash potion to the face! With him cured, I'll get his help to curing everyone else before thing from beyond space and time tries to take over again. Ok?” Vechs smiled happily, tossing a splash potion from hand to hand.

Avidya looked at Vechs, amused. “No way in hell, man. I don't trust you as far as I can throw you. Well, I trust you even less then that. You're pretty scrawny.”

Vechs shrugged, unconcerned. “Well, it's either that, or I leave you three here with a contingency of pigmen to watch over you. So either you get to participate and help the friends you left back in spawn with an eldtritch abomination that you ran away from, or stay here and hope I can do it all myself without setting everyone...everything on fire accidentally.” Anderz stood up, glaring at Vechs.

“There's no way you're not taking me! I sure as hell will be part of this fucking fight!” Anderz said, positively seething with anger. Avidya closed his eyes, holding his head in his hands. “Come on! We're all going to fight that fucking spaghetti monster thing from wherever the fuck it's from!” Anderz said, staring at his friends. GenerikB shrugged, confused. 

Avidya sighed again, before shrugging. “Can't let you go alone. Anderz...so predictable.” Avidya frowned at Anderz before turning to Vechs. Vechs was smiling happily, humming softly. “Attempt any funny business and I will find you.”

Vechs gasped, placing a hand over his heart. “Heaven forbid I ever do anything to help anyone from the kindness of my heart! So cruel and untrusting, Avidya. I thought higher of you.” Vechs frowned slightly, looking actually hurt. Avidya frowned, looking away. He still didn't trust that Vechs wouldn't try something later. But for now, he was their only chance to get back and help their friends.

Vechs stood up, pocketing the potion. “We'll go when the pigmen say that dawn has come on the surface. This is in about twelve hours. So everyone needs to get some rest. The pigmen will take you to your rooms. Not the cells Anderz, please don't start shouting again.” Anderz grunted, before following one of the pigmen. GenerikB left quietly with a second pigman, leaving Avidya with Vechs.

“I don't trust you, Vechs. Not at all.” Vechs smiled at him lazily. “I know. It's really fortunate that doesn't matter. Did you know I'm really good at making techy things that shouldn't exist? Like goggles that hypnotize people. I'd rather get people to stab themselves in the back, but I guess you'll have to just be hypnotized. Now be good, and stay still.” Vechs smirked as Avidya closed his eyes.

“You two, hold him down. And you, open his eyes. Yes, you can be rough.” Avidya grimaced as they yanked his eyes open as Vechs stared down at him. 

“Why not just do this at the start? Why wait now?” Avidya asked, confused.

“It's more...subliminal. You'll listen to what I have to say and won't attempt to backstab me is all. Not really hypnotism, but it's easier then saying subliminal mind control that makes people do what I want and not go all backstabby. GenerikB doesn't know enough to get backstabby, and well, Anderz is incredibly predictable, I already have a nice plan for when he tries inevitably to murder me.” Vechs said, pouting, before flicking something on the side of the goggles. The sound of Vechs laughing wormed its way into Avidya's ears, then silence.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is happening at around the same time Avidya, Anderz and GenerikB stepped into the nether, so just about three days after the Doc/Etho/Nebris disaster.

Zisteau hummed quietly to himself as he finished stitching Pause back up. “You were very good today! All quiet. I think it helped to take away your vocal cords yesterday, hm. Made you so much calmer when you got them back today. Should thank the little bats for all the help they provided.” Zisteau grinned at the bats hanging above Pauses operating table. “It's a lovely bat-mobile, isn't it? Oh! Bat-mobile! That's amusing.” Zisteau laughed softly as Pause lay silent.

“You two are just no fun to talk to anymore. I'm going out. Just stay all cozy. Your iv's should keep you all happy for awhile. Well, not dying. Happy is subjective though, heh.” Zisteau smirked at Pause and Doc before poking one of the bats, causing it to shriek, sending the rest of the mobile into a shrieking frenzy before falling silent. He smirked as he left the room, the metal door squealing as he pulled it shut.

Pause sighed slowly. Everything hurt. Zisteau had spent the last three days dissecting him and Doc. The dissection itself wasn't so bad. He could deal with the pain and the blood. It wasn't any worse then a particularly bad UHC match. It was the constant talking Zisteau did. He normally wouldn't have minded Zisteau talking. It wasn't like he had a bad voice. But he just...he told the two of them what he was doing. What he was going to do. How he was going to keep doing it. But worse was when Zisteau told Doc about how he had stabbed Etho, and how Etho still had the wound from it, which would always segue into worse talk. How happy Etho seemed to be with Nebris. How mad Etho had been with Doc when Doc went and kidnapped the two of them. Which would cause Pause to become infuriated when he heard Doc start to cry again. But that only caused Zisteau to tell Pause how Guude had kidnapped Millbee and was keeping him in the tower, and he knows what happens in the tower, right? Or how Beef had no one to talk to at all, all alone by himself, abandoned by his friends. That Guude had stolen all his friends, and didn't even care to steal him too, left him all alone.

He tried to shout and yell and scream the first day. The second day Zisteau had gotten bored with his insults and threats, and had cut out his vocal cords, hanging them above him for him to see. It was at that time he made the semi-dead bat-mobile. To keep the vocal cords company, Zisteau said. Any time Pause tried to move or jerk or do anything other then listen to Zisteau, he'd poke the bat-mobile. 

He closed his eyes and shivered. That sound would never go away. Sighing softly, he wiggled about, trying to pull his head up enough to look around and find Doc.

He bite his lip as he saw Doc. Zisteau had removed the metal that had covered half of his body, and had hung it on the wall as some sort of macabre trophy. Doc's exposed skin was bubbling and oozing, a livid shade of bright red mixed with green. His mechanical eye was no where to be seen, instead there was a hole.

Doc turned his head towards Pause, finding him staring at him. He closed his one working eye and turned away.

“I'm sorry.” Doc said, after a long silence.

“Yeah, I'm sure you are.” Pause said, voice cracking. He winced when he realized how that must have sounded. “I'm not being sarcastic! Honest! It's just. This whole situation sucks.”

Silence.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Zisteau hummed to himself as he made his way back to spawn. Overland travel, while slow, was so relaxing compared to the excitement back at the lab. It would be good to visit old friends, see how they were doing. He had neglected to call Kurt for a long time, and neither Doc nor Pause seemed to know what he was up to. He chuckled quietly to himself. Well, didn't want to tell him, at least. So he was going to check on him, see how he was doing. Maybe talk for a bit.

On the outskirts of the city, Zisteau found himself looking at the observatory. The observatory seemed locked up, which wasn't unusual given it was the middle of the day. Trying the door, he found it barred.

Zisteau frowned. Kurt hadn't given him a key to the observatory, but he was sure that was just an oversight. Shrugging to himself, he slammed a shoulder into the front door, breaking it open. Snorting softly, he pushed the door closed as he made his way through the dark observatory.

The faint sound of foot steps alerted him to Kurt. “Who...who's there? I warn you, I'm armed!” Kurt said. Zisteau wrinkled his nose, amused. He might sound more intimidating if he wasn't whimpering softly. Quietly padding up behind Kurt, he grabbed him as he fumbled with his glasses. With a strangled shout, Kurt dropped both his sword and his glasses.

Zisteau snorted again as he turned Kurt around, staring down at him. “Hi Kurt. It's been awhile. Thought I'd come and check up on a friend.” Kurt stared up at Zisteau, face filled with dread.

Stuttering, Kurt shivered under Zisteau's grasp. “I, uh. I...hi Zisteau? Did, did you need anything or can I go back to bed? Not that you aren't welcome of course, I just, just wasn't expecting you!” He laughed nervously, a weak smile on his face. Zisteau frowned down at him, causing Kurt to stop smiling and whimper softly.

“Are you scared to see me, Kurt? That makes me sad, hm. Why are you so scared of me?” Zisteau said, his voice almost growling. Kurt shouldn't be scared of him. Kurt was suppose to come with him and do sciency things.

Swallowing suddenly, Kurt said quietly, “Weeell, BDoubleO told me what you've been up to, and it's just, just a bit scary, you know? I didn't want to upset you, so I just stayed here and please stop shaking me it's starting to hurt.” Kurt bit his lip as he closed his eyes. He couldn't see Zisteau's face all that clearly without the glasses, but he was pretty sure he had upset him. Badly. He knew it would be very bad to say he hadn't visited him deliberately after what BDoubleO had told him, that he had kept the place barred up in the hopes Zisteau wouldn't visit him.

Zisteau closed his eyes as he snorted loudly. This wouldn't do at all. Well, he'd just have to take Kurt back with him, show him he had nothing to be scared of at all. He'd be able to convince him eventually. 

Zisteau picked Kurt up, swinging him over his shoulder at the same time as grabbing Kurt's glasses. “Whwhat are you DOING Zisteau?” Kurt said, panicking. “We're going to my place so I can show you there's nothing to be afraid of,” Zisteau said calmly. 

“Zisteau, this is insane! Are you mad? You're kidnapping me!” Kurt shouted as Zisteau carried him out of the observatory, away from the town.

Zisteau shook his head as he continued to walk towards the lens. Kurt always was scared of change. If he wanted to help Kurt, he'd just have to do it himself. Even if Kurt protested, he was sure he'd be able to make him happier in the long run.

By the time they had reached the lens, Kurt had fallen silent. No amount of pleading or cajoling had convinced Zisteau to let him go. He went limp, accepting that his friend had gone nuts. Hopefully BDoubleO or someone would notice he'd gone missing. Not that he expected them to, since even BDoubleO so rarely visited him anymore he had nearly forgotten the last time he saw him. A week ago? Maybe two?

Kurt closed his eyes, sighing softly as they made their way into the lens. 

“So! Here. You can stay here for a moment.” Zisteau said as he dropped Kurt in a small cell, closing the door behind him.

“Just be nice to him, maybe he won't do anything bad, just make small talk, don't make him mad at you...” Kurt whispered to himself, holding himself tightly. He had no delusions about being able to stand up to Zisteau. Zisteau was nearly twice as large as he was, and clearly very set in his goals. He just kept whispering to himself as the door swung open as Zisteau came back.

“I thought since you seemed scared, I'd give you something to make you less scared.” Zisteau said soothingly, nodding as he held out a needle. Kurt started to whimper softly. “Hold out your arm. It'll be just a small prick.” Zisteau said as he smiled at Kurt. 

Kurt closed his eyes and held out his arm, shaking. “I'm so sorry I'm so sorry...” he whispered quietly as Zisteau grabbed his arm, carefully injecting it with the bright pink fluid. He whimpered as the needle pierced his skin, before Zisteau quickly swabbed it and bandaged his arm. He was surprisingly gentle with the needle Kurt thought as his head started to fill with fuzzy thoughts and feelings.

“Now, don't you feel calmer?” Zisteau said, smiling at Kurt as he gave Kurt his glasses. Kurt put his glasses on, trying to formulate a response. “What did you do?” He managed to say, before everything went hazy. The last thing he remembered was falling onto the bed, Zisteau mumbling something about dosages.


	21. Chapter 21

Kurt woke up on a fluffy red bed. His head felt like someone had removed his brain, and placed a lump of cotton candy in its place. He idea of having cotton candy for brains made him feel hungry. A faint nagging sensation tickled the back of his mind, that this wasn't normal, he should be worried, he needed to leave, but he couldn't seem to focus on the idea at all, and gave up.

Kurt sat upright in the bed, blinking. His glasses were not on his face. As he blinked, someone placed his glasses back in his face. He blinked again, turning to see who had given him his glasses.

“Oh hi Zisteau. Thanks. Where am I? What happened? My head feels funny.” Kurt said, pushing his glasses further up his nose so they wouldn't fall off. Zisteau smiled at him, a faint sparkle at the back of his eyes.

“You're fine. You were panicky earlier, so I gave you some medicine to make you feel better. You fell asleep. You feel better now?” Zisteau asked calmly. Kurt blinked. Something did feel strangely familiar about this. “Yeah...what are you up to?”

Zisteau smirked slightly as he stood up, offering his hand to Kurt. “Want to see?” Kurt took Zisteau's hand, following him down the hallway. 

Kurt found himself staring down at Pause and Doc. He really should say something. Anything. “Why?” Kurt asked as Pause looked up at him, pain and horror etched onto his face. Kurt stared down at him blankly. He really should do something. But he didn't think Zisteau would appreciate that.

“Because they've both been very very bad, and Guude has allowed me to study them, hm? I could use assistance in studying them, if you'd help. Or you could just stay in your room all day, but that's so boring!” Zisteau said, smiling at Kurt. Pause glared up at Zisteau, face twisted into rage. “Calm down Pause, otherwise I'll make sure your face will stick like that.” Zisteau said idly, teeth barred slightly.

Kurt closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind. He should run away, hide, do something. But Zisteau had been nice to him, hadn't he? He was sure if Zisteau said they had been bad, they really had been. He'd have to make sure Zisteau was giving them pain medicine though. Otherwise that might be cruel.

“I, I guess I could help you. I mean, if you say they did something bad...” Kurt trailed off as Zisteau nodded solemnly. “Oh yes. They've been very bad. That's why we can't let them talk, hm. They'd try to tell you terrible lies. So. Could you have me that scalpel?” Zisteau asked, tilting his head at Kurt.

Kurt handed Zisteau the scalpel as Pause closed his eyes, defeated.


	22. Chapter 22

Avidya, GenerikB, Anderz, and Vechs stood in front of the nether portal that should lead to spawn. GenerikB frowned, not recognizing the portal. He tried to calculate where it would take them in spawn, but the math didn't seem to be lining up, it seemed like it should do two very different places or even times. He frowned as he looked over at Anderz and Avidya, hoping they'd be ok. He wasn't sure what to do about Vechs. Avidya hadn't said anything on the way here, so he thought maybe Avidya and Vechs had spoken, maybe an agreement had been reached. Vechs was quietly looking over a small journal, figuring out the best plan of attack.

Vechs licked his lips as he looked at the small journal and watch he kept on him at all times. He had to do this at just the right time in order for everything to work. Time distortion and manipulation were difficult. And while he knew it would work since it had worked before, it was always nerve-wracking the wait. Notably since he wanted to work proper this time. He silently started to count down as he inched closer to the portal. At the exact moment he was leaning on the portal, an explosion rocked the nether.

Avidya, Anderz and GenerikB ducked down, shouting in frustration as smoke and dust filled the air. As the haze cleared, they looked up. Vechs was no where to be seen.

“That motherfucking asshole! We gotta go through the portal! Didn't he say something about time distortion and travel and weird shit happening with portals?” Anderz shouted as he charged towards the portal. In his rage, he failed to notice someone stepping out from behind the portal. He crashed into the gentleman, sending the two of them falling to the ground in panicked shouts and yelling.

“Who the fuck are you? Who the fuck are you?” Anderz shouted as he hopped up, holding his sword out in front of him.

“Eeaasy there, Anderz. I'd rather not wind up with a sword through my gut, thank you very much.” Adlington said, pulling himself up using the edge of the nether portal. Anderz gaped at Adlington, unsure what to say.

Anderz blinked as he watched Adlington stand up. “Adlington, what the fuck are you doing here?” He said, hand on his sword. Adlington brushed himself off as he stared at Anderz. “Trying to figure out a way to get out of here? It's not like Vechs was keeping me hostage or anything. We should go through the portal and find him, shouldn't we?” Adlington said, shifting slightly. Anderz was suspicious but before he could say anything else Avidya smiled at Adlington, nodding.

“Yes, let's go. Who knows what could have happened while he's been in the overworld.” The four of them squeezed into the portal. The sound of thrumming filled their ears as everything shivered, depositing them in cold dampness of spawn.

Anderz spun around, searching for the others. He howled in rage when he saw a horde of pigmen in front of him. Light fingers grazed his shoulder. Turning around in rage, Anderz swung his sword in an arc before dropping to his knees as he saw who was behind him, sword clattering to the ground.

“Wh..what the...” Anderz whispered, staring up at Vechs. No. That wasn't Vechs. It might have been at one time. Whatever it was now, it was smirking at him, staring at him. His head was pounding, everything seemed to waver and flicker as he stared at Vechs, no at it. “Whhhaaat...” 

Vechs looked down at Anderz, grinning. “Did you know if you time things just right when going through a portal, you can arrive before you left, setting up a predestination paradox? And that if other people want to stop you, they'd have to be very quick and not get into conversations with minions.”

Anderz whimpered, remembering what he had spent so long trying to forget on that first day. What they had all tried and nearly forgotten. What they shouldn't have forgotten. Guude opening the portal. Looking inside, seeing the vast emptiness of space and time. Shrugging slightly, confused. Vechs walking out from a nether portal that wavered nearby. Smirking at them all as he stepped into the void. Lines of words and sounds and colours curling around Vechs, tearing him apart. Peals of laughter ringing out as Vechs...no, the entity smirked at them, scrutinizing them. TheJims and Guude arguing about what should be done. Guude wanting to appeal to Vechs morality. TheJims offering to help Vechs, as long as he got free reign for once. Vechs laughing again, siding with TheJims. Watching TheJims and the Entity smirk at Guude and...

Anderz let out a soft groan as he passed out.

Waking up, he found TheJims staring down at him, in a small cell with no windows or doors. “Where...where's that thing?” Anderz said, groaning. TheJims smirked. “Vechs? The entity? Busy watching Etho I think. You've had your fun, running away. He told me I get to have fun with you since my plan worked. You'll be even more fun then Guude to play with. It'll take so much longer to break you completely I think.” TheJims smirked at him, leaning against the wall.

“So what, is time all in a circle then because of that asshole? Going back in time and stuff?” Anderz asked, confused. TheJims laughed, shaking his head. “Not quite. He's in a circle, but it's all looped properly, sort of. Well, once he got it to loop right. First time we've gone passed the first few thousand loops. First time you three didn't run into Shree because I figured out Etho needed to find him first, and how I managed to get to Jsano before you lot found him.”

“Jsano? What does he have to do with this?” Anderz asked weakly. His head was pounding. “Earlier iterations of the loops, he'd gather the hidden members along with BTC. They'd destroy the city, but not before Vechs started the time loop again. And again. And again. No one remembered it looping, but they did get so much easier to break after the 100th time...by the 500th time, everyone was firmly established in their roles. Only Vechs remembered clearly each cycle. He kept trying to figure it out himself. Then we spoke.” TheJims laughed softly. The sound sent shivers down Anderz spine.

“We planned. I won't go into details, in case we just started a larger loop, but if we did, it hopefully means I get to torture you for awhile before the loop closes again.” TheJims smiled at Anderz. “You just hate being helpless so much, don't you. Vechs said in every single iteration you've tried to murder him. I think this is the first time you dropped your sword when you saw him though. So sad. So much fun.” TheJims grinned, fangs and claws growing. The faint sound of Vechs laughing filled the small room.


	23. Chapter 23

Vechs smirked as he leaned back, letting his consciousness wander across the server. Part of him kept an eye on TheJims and Anderz, smirking as he heard howls of pain and sobbing from Anderz. Giggling to himself, he relaxed, continuing his search for the elusive BTC.

Each cycle grew longer and longer. Eventually he hoped the cycle would break, that everyone would be under his control. But he'd never manage that if he couldn't find BTC.

Vechs growled softly, clenching his fists. BTC always managed to convince everyone he was their hero, their savior. He was the only one to remember what it was like before the first loop. What BTC had done to the server. How he had everyone tied up and doing his bidding. Vechs had tried to stop him normally, tell them what BTC was doing. But they ignored him.

So he fought fire with fire. Using the nether, he went back to before BTC took control of people, before he clouded their minds. And he did it first. They fought against him, oh they did. Each and every time. And each time they did, he got harsher with them. But it had to be done. Break their spirits so they wouldn't listen to BTC. Mold them so they'd attack BTC when they saw him. The side effects were bad, but he didn't care. He'd control them all eventually.

It was slow. It took ages to do, but once it had worked, the loops started to get longer and longer. He got better and better at it, finding people over the server before they could do anything, sending out Etho before BTC could get to them. 

But BTC always figured out a way to outmaneuver him, to almost stop him. Every time. So he just tried harder. He wouldn't let BTC win and destroy everyone. Sure, he might have to do some questionable things in order to stop him, but in the long run, wasn't it better for everyone?

Not that he'd admit to anyone that he might have started enjoying it. The first few hundred cycles he had felt guilty when he had started brainwashing people more. But it got results. So he started to use it more. And when that started to cause unintended side effects in the long run, he had gotten Zisteau to help.

He was truly surprised the first time TheJims had started tearing into Guude. He had to intervene and stop him from killing him. He had tried to calm him down, but couldn't. He was just too angry to brainwash. So he threatened him. It worked, but only a bit. At first, he only watched TheJims tear into Guude out of a morbid fascination. These days well...

Vechs smirked as Anderz shrieked in pain. He could hear him hitting the ground, unmoving. TheJims knew better then to kill anyone. He idly wondered how long it would take Anderz to heal though.

As he searched across the map, looking for BTC, he idly rubbed the goggles. The goggles had been the tipping point, allowing him to brainwash people so much more effectively. When he stepped into the rift, they became a part of him, allowing him to weigh down on peoples minds. He didn't strictly need a physical form after going through the portal, but it helped to keep TheJims in line.

Thinking of TheJims made his mind wander back to him, watching him torment Anderz. Vechs whispered in TheJims' ear, before taking off to where Guude and Jsano were. He ran both hands over his clothing, smoothing it out before grinning, walking through the wall. These two always were the the worst troublemakers after BTC. He couldn't help but indulge his cruelty just a bit with them. He'd have to show them how much worse he could be then TheJims.


	24. Chapter 24

Jsano woke up with a start as he heard moaning behind him. Looking over at Guude, he saw Guude was sleeping fitfully, whimpering and jerking every so often. But he wasn't groaning. Looking around the room, he saw Vechs lying on the floor, bound up, groaning. Going pale Jsano pulled himself off the small bed to go check on Vechs.

“Hey man, what are you doing here? What happened?” Jsano asked, apprehensive. Something seemed off but he shrugged, going into helping mode. He pulled Vechs upright, pulling his bindings off. While he seemed to have been banged up, it seemed surprisingly superficial. Jsano frowned, before pulling away from Vechs, armed crossed.

Jsano pursed his lips as Vechs look at him, sighing. “I had hoped to have a little more fun with you before you found out, but you were always so observant. Tell me. What was wrong this time?” Vechs said with a growl, cracking his neck as he stood up, features smoothing out, becoming more angular and sharp. Jsano went pale as he watched Vechs stand up, towering over him.

“What...what are you?” Jsano asked quietly, nervous. He knew what Vechs was, but his mind couldn't seem to accept the answer. 

Vechs sneered at him. “You know full well who and what I am, Jsano.” Jsano swallowed, face ashen. Vechs continued, coldly. “You are one of the major consistent pains for me, Jsano. And that upsets me. Very badly. TheJims told me how he found you. I don't believe you were by yourself. So where is he, Jsano?”

“Who are you talking about, Vechs? I wasn't with anyone, I was by myself.” Jsano shivered as Vechs grabbed him. Trails of smoke rose from his shoulder as the fabric started to smoke. Vechs' hand was so cold it was causing the shirt to break apart on a subatomic level. Jsano's eyes widened as he realized what would happen if he touched bare skin. He started to open his mouth but couldn't as the shirt evaporated, and Vechs' hand touched him.

He collapsed on the ground screaming in pain, gasping. Vechs smirked, picking up Jsano by the collar. He trailed a fingertip along Jsano's jawline, causing hissing bubbling burn marks to flourish under his touch. Jsano shrieked as Vechs dropped him, looking down at him.

“I will ask again, Jsano. Where the fuck is he?” Vechs said, sneering down at Jsano as he gasped for breath, one hand holding onto his face. Jsano glared at Vechs, using the wall to stand up, before spitting on Vechs. Vechs grabbed him by the throat, dragging him from the room into the bathroom as Jsano screamed in pain.

Vechs threw Jsano into the shower, cranking the shower onto it's coldest setting. “Answer the fucking question.” Vechs said, voice low and dangerous, the room filled with the cold static hiss of the void. Jsano sat on the floor of the shower shivering, mouth closed, ignoring Vechs.

“You should answer the question, Jsano. And soon.” Jsano continued to shiver, face set in stone as he closed his eyes, continuing to ignore Vechs. Vechs shrugged before smiling grimly at Jsano.

“Very well.” Vechs turned the water onto hot abruptly causing Jsano to howl in pain, trying to scrabble out of the shower. Vechs pushed him back in with a finger to the forehead, a large welt appearing, blistering and oozing. Jsano bit his lip, gasping for breathe as Vechs switched the water to cold again. “I can do this for a very long time, Jsano. Where the fuck is he.”

“Ffuuck you.” Jsano said, shivering. Vechs shrugged, pulling him out of the shower as he continued to shiver. He smiled at Jsano, his face mere inches away. Vechs exhaled slowly, cold breath caressing Jsano's skin, freezing the sheet of water covering him solid. 

Vechs trailed his fingertips along Jsano's neck, causing him to bite his lip as he tried to not shriek from the pain again. “I wonder what scares you most, Jsano.” Vechs said idly as he continued to trail his fingers along Jsano's bare skin. “Not insects, no. Not fire, obviously. I doubt death scares you too much even. TheJims told me you tried to protect Guude. Maybe I should go play with him for a bit.” Jsano shivered at that, eyes dilating. Vechs smirked at the reaction. “Seems like I should.”

Vechs pulled Jsano out of the bathroom into the main room. Guude was curled up next to the bed, a bundle of blankets, sobbing quietly. Vechs smirked as he threw Jsano at the wall. Before he could fall to the ground, Vechs twitched his hand, causing long lengths of rope to spring from the wall, tying him in place. Vechs grinned at Jsano, teeth pointed and sharp, eyes completely devoid of colour.

“TheJims said you tried to look away. I don't care if you try. Because you can't stop from hearing what I'll be doing to him.” Vechs turned away from Jsano, pulling Guude from his pathetic pile of blankets.

Vechs grinned at Guude. “Hi there Guude dear. I am truly sorry to be doing this to you. If Jsano would just tell me what I want to know, I wouldn't have to do this at all. But well, it must be done. Greater good and all that.” 

Guude whimpered softly as he looked at Vechs. “Please don't do this Vechs. Please stop. Please stop.” Guude said as Vechs ran a hand through Guude's hair.

Vechs continued to run his hand through Guude's hair before touching his scalp, causing him to wail loudly. Vechs tore Guude's clothing to ribbons as he continued to touch him, welts and bruises flourishing under his touch, burning and bubbling, bright red and vicious.

Turning around, Vechs checked on Jsano. Jsano had his head hanging, unresponsive, tears streaming down, the faint sound of them hitting the floor. Vechs smirked before turning back to Guude.

Vechs pushed him against the wall, staring at him. “Look at me, Guude.” Guude whimpered before staring at Vechs in the eyes, his own eyes going hazy, mouth slack. “You so hate insects, do you? I wonder what you'd do if you thought you were infested. To what lengths you'd go to try and get rid of them. But every time you managed to tear yourself apart trying to get them out, they'd just come back. Gnawing away on you from the inside, hearing them in your ears and mouth and eyes and nose. Tearing at your skin, trying to get them out, unable to do anything since they just keep coming back. Whatever would you do...” Vechs trailed off as he heard Jsano growl slightly. 

“Leave him the fuck alone Vechs. I don't know where BTC went.” Vechs dropped Guude with a thump, leaving him motionless on the floor. Gliding over to Jsano, he grabbed him by the throat. “What did he tell you? What was he doing? Tell me!” Vechs shook Jsano, causing him to groan.

“I don't know! I don't know! He came and told me he had a plan to save everyone. He just told me to stay in a certain place and wait.” Vechs hissed, eyes widening. He quickly scanned Jsano, cursing to himself. TheJims hadn't searched him when he had brought him in. Searching quickly, he found the out of place item on Jsano. He grabbed the watch Jsano had on him, crushing it. BTC had used Jsano as a decoy.

Vechs released Jsano, leaving him pined to the wall from the ropes. His eyes went distant as he mentally spoke to TheJims. _TheJims. Go check on everyone. Re-establish control. NOW_ He could feel TheJims blink, before agreeing affirmatively. 

Vechs hissed slightly. He had to see what damage BTC had managed to cause. But first, he had to deal with Jsano and Guude. He picked Guude back up, smirking at Jsano as Jsano frowned, face etched with pain. “No, don't...” Jsano trailed off as Vechs turned away, ignoring him as Vechs whispered in Guude's ear. Vechs dropped Guude on the ground as he started to sob. 

“Have fun with Guude, Jsano.” Vechs said as he pulled himself from the location, teleporting to the tower.


	25. Chapter 25

Jsano breathed heavily, unsure he wanted to know what Vechs had done to Guude. “Guude, man, are you ok?” Guude ignored him, sobbing hysterically. Jsano sighed as he tried to pull himself off the wall, failing. He was bound up tightly, unable to move.

“Guude, man. I know you're in bad shape over there, but could you cut me down?” Jsano said, continuing to try and pull the ropes off by himself. Guude continued to cry on the floor, unwilling or unable to help Jsano.

Jsano inhaled deeply, unhappy with what he had to do. “GUUDE! Stop crying on the god damned floor and come cut me down!” He shouted, startling Guude, who finally looked up to see Jsano tied to the wall, burn marks covering his face. 

Guude's face twisted in anger as he stood up, yanking at the cords holding Jsano to the wall. He leaned next to him, whispering in his ear. “Yyou can go fuck yourself Jsano. You ffucking knew what was going on here. But instead of helping me, instead of getting me out of this goddamned hellhole you, you left me here. You let me get tortured by by those things. You pretended to care. Just get the fuck out of here and leave me alone.” Guude said as he cut the cords holding Jsano to the wall before collapsing on the floor, head on his knees, ignoring Jsano.

Jsano sighed softly as he pulled the rest of the cords off of himself as he looked down at Guude. It was highly unfortunate that is what Vechs choose to tell him. Almost anything else he could convince Guude it would be ok, everything would be alright. But breaking Guude's trust in him...Vechs was just getting smarter and crueler.

Jsano exhaled slowly, voice softening. “Guude, please. I didn't want you to be tortured. If I had come sooner and gotten you out of here, you would have died. Please trust me, Guude.” 

Guude looked up, glaring at Jsano. “And you know that for a fact, huh? Leave me alone. Just, just leave.” Jsano bit his lip until it bled, before exhaling slowly. He closed his eyes before turning back towards the door, shouldering it, popping it open. Fog and mist rolled into the room, making it difficult to see.

“I'm really really sorry Guude. I can't leave you here.” Jsano said as he picked up Guude, tossing him over his shoulder. Guude howled with pain from being grabbed, his skin still raw and bubbling. “Let me go you fucking asshole!” Guude shrieked before Jsano used some of the leftover ropes to make a temporary gag. “Shouting is going to attract attention neither of us wants or needs.” Jsano said sadly.

“I'm really really sorry. But you apparently are part of some key part of this plan. So off we go.” Jsano said as he started to run through the city, avoiding the main thoroughfares. Guude tried to ineffectually hit Jsano on his back to let him down, but gave up as the left the city, sulking instead.

As Jsano slowed down to a walk, they continued on in silence. “So what's this grand plan of yours,” Guude mumbled, shaking Jsano out of his concentration. Jsano coughed softly. “Not sure. Best you ask BTC about that.”

“We're seeing BTC then?” Guude asked quietly. “Possibly. I'm not sure exactly what his plan is. He's not exactly the most forthcoming in telling me.” Jsano replied as they came upon a very small door hidden in the side of a cliff.

Opening the door, they found themselves in a small room. Jsano carefully let Guude down as he closed the door behind the two of them. Guude looked around the room in stunned silence. Maps and papers were strewn around the room, decorating every spare inch. Lines criss-crossed across the room, connecting papers and notes. Guude swallowed nervously as he turned towards Jsano.

“Uhhh...are you sure he isn't insane, Jsano?” Guude asked quietly as he edged away from Jsano, still upset. “You'd be insane too if you knew what was going to happen and were unable to stop it, Guude.” BTC said quietly as he placed a hand on Guude's shoulder. Guude spun around, trying to punch BTC. BTC stepped to the side, causing Guude to flail wildly about before crashing to the ground with a whimper.

“BTC, don't do that. He's already been through enough.” Jsano said as he reached down to help Guude up. Guude pulled himself up, ignoring Jsano's outstretched hand. Jsano sighed softly, before shrugging, leaning against the wall.

BTC stared at the two of them, before sitting down on a nearby chair. “I'd go into details, but neither of you remember anything, so it'll just be pointless if this all doesn't work and you lose your memories again. Suffice to say, Vechs is an asshole, we need to defeat Vechs. We've tried this a lot. A ton of times, in fact. I lost count around the six thousandth time.” BTC sighed softly, rubbing his head. Guude looked up at BTC, uncomprehending.

Jsano pursed his lips as he pushed off the wall, sitting next to BTC. “So what's the plan this time?” BTC rubbed his hands together, smiling faintly. “I've kept trying to stop him from going through the portal. I think. We need to go through the portal before him. And once we've gone through, we need to close it so Vechs can't just walk through and start it all over again. Which is where you come in, Guude. You're the only one capable of doing that. So, I go through the portal, you close it behind me. That way Vechs can't start all this over again.”

Guude scratched at the side of his face before wincing. “Why should I trust you? You left me to be tortured just as much as Jsano here. If not more so.” Guude said, not looking at either of them. 

Coldly, BTC looked over at Guude before responding. “Trust me, I've tried to rescue you before you were tortured. Several hundred times, we tried. It ends in your death, which just causes everything to reset. So sure, if we wanted to reset everything the easy way, we could just let you die. But that's not very useful. So either you can help, or wait for TheJims and Vechs to find you. Your choice.” BTC said, unconcerned. 

Guude frowned, mumbling to himself. “Whatever. Plan your plans to yourself. I'll close the fucking portal. Tell me where a bed is.” Guude said as he looked at the floor. BTC glanced over at Jsano, shrugging slightly before standing up. “Through there.” BTC said as he pointed towards a side room. Guude looked up, nodding, leaving the room.

Jsano glanced over at BTC as Guude left the room. “He doesn't trust us. Vechs told him about the loops and how we leave him there, I suspect,” he said quietly. BTC shrugged. “He doesn't need to trust me, he just needs to close the portal. Vechs...needs to learn to not meddle.” BTC growled softly, fists clenching. Jsano frowned slightly. BTC never told him why he was so adamant to stop Vechs. Sometimes he told him it was because how Vechs treated people, but sometimes, like now, Jsano felt there was something else going on. Jsano closed his eyes, pushing the thought from his mind. They had to get rid of Vechs. He had seen what Vechs had done, and refused to let it happen again and again. Or so, BTC told him happened again and again...

“BTC, I'm going to sleep also. If you need me, you know where I am.” Jsano said tiredly. “Lovers quarrel, hm?” BTC said, amused. Jsano blinked at BTC, confused. “What? No! We aren't...what?” BTC laughed, shrugging. “Never mind. Sleep well.”

BTC stretched, bones making a clacking sound as Jsano left the room. He stared up at the ceiling and at the papers covering it. He hoped this plan would work. It was certainly different enough to at least confuse Vechs. He just hoped he'd finish it before Jsano figured out what was going on. Exhaling slowly, he started to prepare for the coming journey.


	26. Chapter 26

BTC woke Jsano and Vechs up early, before the sun rose. He had gathered supplies, the meager amount they needed for the relatively short trip. He hoped that Vechs was still too busy searching the city to notice the nether portals being used. If he did notice, it would be more difficult. Luckily, if he did send zombie pigmen after them, he'd be able to summon wither skeletons. The pigmen should back off if he did that.

He was sure Jsano was becoming suspicious. And why shouldn't he be? He let him get captured, tortured, and abandoned. His one friend's faith in him was destroyed, and he hadn't even been told why all this was truly occurring. But oh well. He'd be rewarded for his help, eventually. Once BTC managed to deal with Vechs.

They quietly made their way into the heavily guarded nether portal BTC had built relatively far away from their base.

“Once we get inside, we need to march double time to the spawn portal. Once there, we go through at a very exact time. No dawdling. Jsano, I suspect Guude will kneel over from the heat when we go through, so have a hold on him, would you? You know where to go to if we get separated. Don't go through the portal at spawn if I'm not there.” BTC said, voice strict and authoritarian. 

Jsano pursed his lips as he looked at BTC from the corner of his eyes. He didn't trust it when BTC went all authoritarian. It tugged at something hidden in his mind that worried him. Apparently Vechs made time loops, and each loop erased the memories of those in the previous loop. It was concerning that BTC seemed exempt. The only idea he had was those who went into the portal, rift mind you, kept their memories. But if Vechs was the only one...unless BTC went through the portal before Vechs. And BTC was trying to take back what was his.

Luckily his gasp of realization was covered by the loud hooom of the portal and the strangled gasp of Guude as they found themselves in the nether. Jsano picked up Guude, looking to try and find BTC. 

He wasn't visible. Cursing quietly, he helped Guude to his feet.

“Guude, we need to get going. I...” Jsano trailed off as Guude jerked away from Jsano, pulling himself upright. “Fine, whatever. Let's go.” Jsano sighed quietly before leading the way back to spawn.

The two of the walked in silence. Jsano tried several times to tell Guude what he thought BTC had planned, but Guude ignored him the entire way, so he gave up in frustration. 

The two of them found themselves at the spawn portal shortly thereafter. BTC was leaning against the frame, waiting for them. “Almost late. Then we would have had to wait for much longer.” BTC   
frowned, shaking his head. Jsano shrugged, biting his lip.

“When do we go through?” Jsano asked, quietly. BTC grabbed Jsano and Guude by the shoulders as he dragged them through the portal. “Now.” BTC said calmly.

Jsano shook and shivered as the cold air of spawn hit his skin before blinking, looking around.

Memories flooded back, causing a flood of tears as he remembered what actually happened. BTC, standing over the assembled throng. Benevolent, so he claimed, but with sword in hand. Mind still fuzzy about what he was doing, but feelings of pain. Vechs, angry. Standing defiant. Trying to rally all of them against BTC. Failing. Refusing to give up, watched him go through the portal. 

BTC howling, trying to kill him for interfering. Loop one. Going through, pushing BTC away in time. Everyone attacking him. Loop two. Forcing people to stop fighting. Too tired, some still rose. Loop three. Jsano held his head as he felt every single loop, saw every single iteration. And knew every time a loop restarted, they all remembered these things. He managed to look over at Guude. He was staring at someone else, eyes wide, jaw slack. Looking over, he saw BTC and Vechs arguing.

Looking at them was like looking at a photo negative. They seemed harsh and unreal as compared to the landscape around them, the air crackling with a faint haze as ozone burnt and smoked. Jsano could faintly hear them shouting and screaming at each other, locked in a fight over who would go through the portal. 

Jsano frowned. He knew what would happen if either of them succeeded. The other would just force the issue over and over again until they got their wish. And then the other would try and get back at them. Jsano groaned. He was unsure how long this tiff had been going on, but he knew it was likely more then one long iteration. Maybe these large loops of switching back and forth who was in control had been going on for just as many loops as the small ones did.

Jsano was too distracted to notice Guude was no longer beside him. And it was far too late to see he had crept behind Vechs and BTC as they argued, and now stood on the precipice into the place between worlds. 

A gasp went through the crowd, forcing Vechs and BTC to turn. They both shouted as Guude stepped through. The void wrapped around him, his face blank and lifeless as code and words and sound tore into him, changing him. Looking at BTC and Vechs, he sighed quietly as he closed the portal, trapping himself inside.

Jsano blinked, before charging at where the portal use to be, only a faint line of incandescent mist marking the spot. Turning towards BTC and Vechs he growled. “I hope one of you fuckers has a plan on how to get Guude back, after all you've put him through. How long has your little game been going on for, even? Bring him back. NOW.” BTC and Vechs went pale as Jsano shouted at them, backing away from him. They both raised their hands, shaking their heads.

“This is new. We...we didn't expect him to do this. He's never done this before.” BTC said, shaking his head. Vechs smiled faintly, nervously. “In none of the loops has he ever done this that I remember. Pushed him too far, I guess.” Vechs laughed uneasily.

They stood there watching Jsano shake in anger before dropping to his knees. “Fuck man. What do we do now?” Jsano said, tired and alone. 

Etho quietly pulled Jsano up with Nebris' help. “We rebuild. And BTC and Vechs don't get to do much of anything for awhile, I'd say.” The two of them glared at Etho before looking down at the ground, ashamed. The group slowly started to disperse, heading towards things that needed to be attended to. Jsano continued to stand, staring where the portal should be. 

As the others left, Jsano sighed quietly. “How long will this quiet last, Guude?” he said, voice no louder then the quietest whisper. He looked over to see Guude leaning against a nearby lamppost. Guude shrugged slightly, eyes dark.

“A month, maybe? Two, maybe? Longer then the last one.” Guude said tiredly. “Still haven't figured out a way to stop them for longer?” Jsano asked, hopeful. 

Guude shook his head before sighing. “Go get rest before it starts again Jsano. You'll need it. I only foresee it getting worse and worse. And we've already done this almost a million times.” Jsano bit his lip, closing his eyes.

“Long loops or short loops?” he asked, unsure he wanted the answer. Guude looked away, not answering. “Yeah, I didn't think I wanted to hear the answer either. I'll see you soon, Guude.” Guude nodded, before fading away.

Etho placed a hand on Jsano's shoulder. “You ok man?” Jsano shrugged at him. “Sure, just going insane slowly. I think I need some sleep.” Etho patted him on the back, leading him back to town. “It's over now, we should sleep.” Jsano smiled bitterly, not saying a word.


End file.
